JHEK 


JHWl 


THE 


GREAT  CONTROVERSY 


BETWEEI  CHRIST  AND  SATAK 


DURING 


THE  CHRISTIAN  DISPENSATION, 


BY  MRS.  E.  G.  WHITE, 

AUTHOR   OF    "THE    LIFE    OF    CHRIST,"    "PATRIARCHS   AND   PROPHETS, 

"SKETCHES  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  PAUL,"  "STEPS  TO  CHRIST," 

AND  OTHER  WORKS. 


PACIFIC    PRESS   PUBLISHING    COMPANY, 
OAKLAND,  CAL., 

NEW  YORK,  SAN  FRANCISCO,  AND  KANSAS  CITY. 


I 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  i8S8,  by 

w>^.~  g  -f  Wnzt*., 

In  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,   Washington,  D.  C. 


ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 


PUBLISHER'S  PREFACE. 


N  the  leader  of  those  "  angels  which  kept  not  their  first  estate" 
(Jude  6)  fell  from  his  holy  and  exalted  place  in  Heaven,  he  precipitated 
upon  the  universe  of  God  an  awful  controversy. 

From  the  very  nature  of  the  case,  there  must  be  eternal  antago- 
nism between  righteousness  and  sin.  Between  purity  and  pollution 
there  can  be  no  coalition;  nor  could  the  supreme  Author  of  all  things, 
the  God  in  whom  inheres  every  perfection,  maintain  any  other  than 
an  attitude  of  uncompromising  hostility  to  sin  and  all  its  fruits,  to  the 
author  of  rebellion  and  all  his  followers. 

Another  conclusion  is  apparent:  God,  as  the  foe  of  all  evil,  and  at 
the  same  time  omnipotent,  could  not,  consistently  with  his  own  nature, 
suffer  rebellion  to  enter  within  his  realms,  and  abide  forever.  The  in- 
truder must  be  cast  out;  the  disturber  of  the  peace  must  be  destroyed. 
There  can  be  no  question  as  to  the  issue  of  this  controversy  between  a 
holy  Creator  and  the  rebellious  creature. 

That  sin  might  make  a  full  revelation  of  its  nature  and  results  to 
the  intelligences  of  all  worlds,  this  controversy  was  not  arrested  in  its 
inception.  When  sin  is  finally  destroyed,  it  will  have  given  sufficient 
evidence  to  satisfy  every  mind  that  it  deserves  the  infliction;  and  all 
will  joyfully  acquiesce  in  its  merited  doom. 

Happily  we  have  no  evidence  that,  outside  the  apostate  angels,  any 
other  world  than  our  own  has  fallen  under  the  influence  of  this  sinful 
revolt.  But  this  is  enough  to  make  it  a  matter  of  absorbing  interest  to 
us;  for  Satan  and  his  angels  being  cast  out  of  Heaven,  this  world  has 
become  the  sole  theater  of  the  struggle  between  right  and  wrong.  All 
men  have  become  involved  therein.  Between  them  and  salmtioii 
there  lies  the  problem  of  recovery  from  sin,  the  attainment  to  l^km- 
dition  of  reconciliation  and  acceptance  with  God. 

What  theme  is  therefore  entitled  to  be  regarded  with  more  absorb- 
ing interest  than  this  great  controversy — the  stages  through  which  it 
has  passed,  its  present  development,  and  the  outlook  for  the  future. 
How  and  under  what  circumstances  will  the  controversy  end?  and 
have  we  any  evidence  that  the  long-wished-for  termination  is  drawing 
near  ? 

To  the  consideration  of  these  great  themes  the  following  pages  are 
devoted;  and  we  have  the  clearest  assurance  that  the  author  possesses 

(a)  (iii) 


19399ft 


PREFACE. 


peculiar  qualifications  for  such  a  work.  From  her  childhood  she  has 
been  noted  for  her  reverence  and  love  for  the  Word  of  God,  and  her 
piety  and  devotion  to  his  service.  Unbounded  faith  in  the  promises 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures  has  been  both  an  inducement  and  a  means  to 
enable  her  to  live  near  to  the  Saviour.  The  blessing  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
has  been  vouchsafed  to  her  in  large  measure.  And  as  one  of  the  offices 
of  this  Spirit  was  declared  to  be  to  show  unto  the  followers  of  Christ 
"things  to  come"  (John  16:13),  working  through  that  prescribed  chan- 
nel which,  as  one  of  the  endowments  of  the  church,  is  described  as 
the  gift  of  prophecy  (1  Cor.  12:9, 10;  14:1),  so  we  believe  she  has  been 
empowered  by  a  divine  illumination  to  speak  of  some  past  events  which 
have  thus  been  brought  to  her  attention,  with  greater  minuteness  than  is 
set  forth  in  any  existing  records,  and  to  read  the  future  with  more  than 
human  foresight.  Those  who  know  what  it  is  to  hold  communion  with 
our  heavenly  Father,  will,  we  think,  as  they  read  these  pages,  feel  con- 
strained to  believe  that  the  writer  has  drawn  from  the  heavenly  fount- 
ain, and  received  help  from  that  throne  of  grace  where  Christ  sitteth  as 
our  merciful  High  Priest,  and  whence  he  is  ever  ready  to  send  forth  as- 
sistance to  the  many  sons  wiiom  lie  is  bringing  unto  glory.  Heb.  2:10. 

Aside  from  the  great  volume  of  inspiration — the  Bible — no  other  book 
presents  a  more  wonderful  and  intensely  interesting  history  of  the  pres- 
ent dispensation,  to  the  complete  restitution  of  all  things,  than  the  vol- 
ume here  offered  to  the  public.  And  as  the  closing  scenes  of  this  world's 
history  are  of  the  most  thrilling  and  momentous  nature,  these  are  more 
particularly  dwelt  upon  in  this  work.  The  reader,  as  he  follows  the  nar- 
rative, beginning  with  a  sketch  of  our  Lord's  great  prophecy  in  Matthew 
24,  will  find  himself  entering  into  new  sympathy  with  the  church  in  her 
warfare  and  her  sufferings,  as  she  passes  on  to  her  promised  redemption  ; 
and  the  soul  of  every  believer  will  kindle  at  the  vivid  description  of  the 
final  triumph  of  the  people  of  God,  the  destruction  of  Satan  and  all  his 
followers,  the  total  and  eternal  extirpation  of  evil  from  the  universe,  and 
the  renovation  of  the  earth  as  the  everlasting  inheritance  of  the  saints, 
when  this  great  controversy  is  concluded. 

While  the  subjects  here  presented  involve  the  loftiest  imagery,  and 
most  wonderful  depth,  even  as  the  apostle  declares,  "  the  deep  things 
of  ( Jod,"  which  the  Spirit  alone  is  capable  of  searching  into  (L  Cor.  2  : 10), 
yet  they  are  treated  in  language  chaste,  simple,  and  easy  to  bo  under- 
stood. And  we  rejoice  to  know  .that  the  reading  of  this  work  leads  to 
greater  confidence  in,  and  love  for,  the  Holy  Scriptures,  to  greater  sym- 
pathy with  Christ,  in  his  marvelous  work  for  the  redemption  of  men, 
and  to  greater  reverence  for  the  God  of  all  grace,  in  whom  are  all  the 
treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge. 

Numerous  editions  <>f  tl»'ls  w«irk  having  already  been  exhausted, 
we  feel  a  peculiar  gratification  in  sending  forth  this  edition,  enlarged 

(*) 


PREFACE. 


and  improved,  and  adapted  to  circulate  in  various  tongues.  The  illus- 
trations will  add  to  the  interest  and  value  of  the  work.  May  it  still 
prove  a  blessing  to  all  who  read,  and  redound  to  the  glory  of  the  Most 
High. 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE. 


BEFORE  the  entrance  of  sin,  Adam  enjoyed  open  communion  with 
his  Maker ;  but  since  man  separated  himself  from  God  by  transgres- 
sion, the  human  race  has  been  cut  off  from  this  high  privilege.  By 
the  plan  of  redemption,  however,  a  way  has  been  opened  whereby  the 
inhabitants  of  the  earth  may  still  have  connection  with  Heaven.  God 
has  communicated  with  men  by  his  Spirit,  and  divine  light  has  been 
imparted  to  the  world  by  revelations  to  his  chosen  servants.  "Holy 
men  of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost."  2  Pet.  1 : 21. 

During  the  first  twenty-five  hundred  years  of  human  history,  there 
was  no  written  revelation.  Those  who  had  been  taught  of  God,  com- 
municated their  knowledge  to  others,  and  it  was  handed  down  from 
father  to  son,  through  successive  generations.  The  preparation  of  the 
written  word  began  in  the  time  of  Moses.  Inspired  revelations  were 
then  embodied  in  an  inspired  book.  This  work  continued  during  the 
long  period  of  sixteen  hundred  years,  from  Moses,  the  historian  of 
creation  and  the  law,  to  John,  the  recorder  of  the  most  sublime  truths 
of  the  gospel. 

The  Bible  points  to  God  as  its  author;  yet  it  was  written  by  human 
hands;  and  in  the  varied  style  of  its  different  books  it  presents  the  char- 
acteristics of  the  several  writers.  The  truths  revealed  are  all  "given 
by  inspiration  of  God"  (2  Tim.  3:16);  yet  they  are  expressed  in  the 
words  of  men.  The  Infinite  One  by  his  Holy  Spirit  has  shed  light 
into  the  minds  and  hearts  01  his  servants.  He  has  given  dreams  and 
visions,  symbols  and  figures;  and  those  to  whom  the  truth  was  thus  re- 
vealed, have  themselves  embodied  the  thought  in  human  language. 

The  ten  commandments  were  spoken  by  God  himself,  and  were 
written  by  his  own  hand.  They  are  of  divine,  and  not  human  com- 
position. But  the  Bible,  with  its  God-given  truths  expressed  in  the 
language  of  men,  presents  a  union  of  the  divine  and  the  human.  Such 
a  union  existed  in  the  nature  of  Christ,  who  was  the  Son  of  God  and 
the  Son  of  man.  Thus  it  is  true  of  the  Bible,  as  it  was  of  Christ,  that 
"the  Word  was  made  flesh,  and  dwelt  among  us."  John  1 : 14. 

Written  in  different  ages,  by  men  who  differed  widely  in  rank  and 
occupation,  and  in  mental  and  spiritual  endowments,  the  books  of  the 


PREFACE. 


Bible  present  a  wide  contrast  in  style,  as  well  as  a  diversity  in  the 
nature  of  the  subjects  unfolded.  Different  forms  of  expression  are 
employed  by  different  writers;  often  the  same  truth  is  more  strikingly 
presented  by  one  than  by  another.  And  as  several  writers  present  a 
.subject  under  varied  aspects  and  relations,  there  may  appear,  to  the 
superficial,  careless,  or  prejudiced  reader,  to  be  discrepancy  or  contra- 
diction, where  the  thoughtful,  reverent  student,  with  clearer  insight, 
discerns  the  underlying  harmony. 

As  presented  through  different  individuals,  the  truth  is  brought 
out  in  its  varied  aspects.  One  writer  is  more  strongly  impressed 
with  one  phase  of  a  subject;  he  grasps  those  points  that  harmonize 
with  his  experience  or  with  his  power  of  perception  and  appreciation; 
another  seizes  upon  a  different  phase ;  and  each,  under  the  guidance  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  presents  what  is  most  forcibly  impressed  upon  his  own 
mind;  a  different  aspect  of  the  truth  in  each,  but  a  perfect  harmony 
through  all.  And  the  truths  thus  revealed  unite  to  form  a  perfect 
whole,  adapted  to  meet  the  wants  of  men  in  all  the  circumstances  and 
experiences  of  life. 

God  has  been  pleased  to  communicate  his  truth  to  the  world  by 
human  agencies,  and  he  himself,  by  his  Holy  Spirit,  qualified  men 
and  enabled  them  to  do  this  work.  He  guided  the  mind  in  the  selec- 
tion of  what  to  speak  and  what  to  write.  The  treasure  was  intrusted 
to  earthen  vessels,  yet  it  is,  none  the  less,  from  Heaven.  The  testimony 
is  conveyed  through  the  imperfect  expression  of  human  language;  yet 
it  is  the  testimony  of  God ;  and  the  obedient,  believing  child  of  God 
beholds  in  it  the  glory  of  a  divine  power,  full  of  gra.ce  and  truth. 

In  his  Word,  God  has  committed  to  men  the  knowledge  necessary 
for  salvation.  The  Holy  Scriptures  are  to  be  accepted  as  an  authorita- 
tive, infallible  revelation  of  his  will.  They  are  the  standard  of  char- 
acter, the  revealer  of  doctrines,  and  the  test  of  experience.  "Every 
scripture  inspired  of  God  is  also  profitable  for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for 
correction,  for  instruction  which  is  in  righteousness ;  that  the  man  of 
God  may  be  complete,  furnished  completely  unto  every  good  work." 
2  Tim.  3: 16, 17,  Revised  Version. 

Yet  the  fact  that  God  has  revealed  his  will  to  men  through  his  Word, 
has  not  rendered  needless  the  continued  presence  and  guiding  of  the 
Holy  Spirit.  On  the  contrary,  the  Spirit  was  promised  by  our  Saviour, 
to  open  the  Word  to  his  servants,  to  illuminate  and  apply  its  teach- 
ings. And  since  it  was  the  Spirit  of  God  that  inspired  the  Bible,  it  is 
impossible  that  the  teaching  of  the  Spirit  should  ever  be  contrary  to 
that  of  the  Word. 

The  Spirit  was  not  given — nor  can  it  ever  be  bestowed — to  supersede 
the  Bible;  for  the  Scriptures  explicitly  state  that  the  Word  of  God  is 
the  standard  by  which  all  teaching  and  experience  must  be  tested. 
(d) 


PREPACK. 


Says  the  apostle  John,  "  Believe  not  every  spirit,  but  try  the  spirits 
whether  they  are  of  God;  because  many  false  prophets  are  gone  out 
into  the  world."  1  John  4:1.  And  Isaiah  declares, "  To  the  law  and 
to  the  testimony  ;  if  they  speak  not  according  to  this  word,  it  is  because 
there  is  no  light  in  them."  Isa.  8  : 20. 

Great  reproach  has  been  cast  upon  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  by 
the  errors  of  a  class  that,  claiming  its  enlightenment,  profess  to  have 
no  further  need  of  guidance  from  the  Word  of  God.  They  are  governed 
by  impressions  which  they  regard  as  the  voice  of  God  in  the  soul.  But 
the  spirit  that  controls  them  is  not  the  Spirit  of  God.  This  following 
of  impressions,  to  the  neglect  of  the  Scriptures,  can  lead  only  to  con- 
fusion, to  deception  and  ruin.  It  serves  only  to  further  the  designs  of 
the  evil  one.  Since  the  ministry  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  of  vital 
importance  to  the  church  of  Christ,  it  is  one  of  the  devices  of  Satan, 
through  the  errors  of  extremists  and  fanatics  to  cast  contempt  upon 
the  work  of  the  Spirit,  and  cause  the  people  of  God  to  neglect  this 
source  of  strength  which  our  Lord  himself  has  provided. 

In  harmony  with  the  Word  of  God,  his  Spirit  was  to  continue  its 
work  throughout  the  entire  period  of  the  gospel  dispensation.  During 
the  ages  while  the  Scriptures  of  both  the  Old  and  the  New  Testament 
were  being  given,  the  Holy  Spirit  did  not  cease  to  communicate  light 
to  individual  minds,  apart  from  the  revelations  to  be  embodied  in  the 
sacred  canon.  The  Bible  itself  relates  how,  through  the  Holy  Spirit, 
men  received  warning,  reproof,  counsel,  and  instruction,  in  matters  in 
no  way  relating  to  the  giving  of  the  Scriptures.  And  mention  is  made 
of  prophets  in  different  ages,  of  whose  utterances  nothing  is  recorded. 
In  like  manner,  after  the  close  of  the  canon  of  Scripture,  the  Holy 
Spirit  was  still  to  continue  its  work,  to  enlighten,  warn,  and  comfort 
the  children  of  God. 

Jesus  promised  his  disciples,  "The  Comforter,  which  is  the  Holy 
Ghost,  whom  the  Father  will  send  in  my  name,  he  shall  teach  you  all 
things,  and  bring  all  things  to  your  remembrance,  whatsoever  I  have 
said  unto  you."  "  When  he,  the  Spirit  of  truth,  is  come,  he  will  guide 
vou  into  all  truth;  .  .  .  and  he  will  show  you  things  to  come."  John 
14 : 26 ;  16 : 13.  Scripture  plainly  teaches  that  these  promises,  so  far 
from  being  limited  to  apostolic  days,  extend  to  the  church  of  Christ 
in  all  ages.  The  Saviour  assures  his  followers,  "I  am  with  you  al way, 
even  unto  the  end  of  the  world."  Matt.  28 :  20.  And  Paul  declares 
that  gifts  and  manifestations  of  the  Spirit  were  set  in  the  church 
"  for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the  work  of  the  ministry,  for  the 
edifying  of  the  body  of  Christ;  till  we  all  come  in  the  unity  of  the 
faith,  and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a  perfect  man, 
unto  the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ."  Eph. 
4:12,13. 


PREFACE. 


For  the  believers  at  Ephesus  the  apostle  prayed,  "  That  the  God  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Father  of  glory,  may  give  unto  you  the 
Spirit  of  wisdom  and  revelation  in  the  knowledge  of  him;  the  eyes  of 
.your  understanding  being  enlightened;  that  ye  may  know  what  is  tlie 
hope  of  his  calling,  and  what  ...  is  the  exceeding  greatness  of 
his  power  to  us-ward  who  believe."  Eph.  1 : 17-19.  The  ministry  of 
the  divine  Spirit  in  enlightening  the  understanding  and  opening  to 
the  mind  the  deep  things  of  God's  holy  Word,  was  the  blessing  which 
Paul  thus  besought  for  the  Ephesian  church. 

After  the  wonderful  manifestation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  day  of 
Pentecost,  Peter  exhorted  the  people  to  repentance  and  baptism  in  the 
name  of  Christ,  for  the  remission  of  their  sins;  and  lie  said,  "  Ye  shall 
receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  For  the  promise  is  unto  you,  and 
to  your  children,  and  to  all  that  are  afar  off,  even  as  many  as  the  Lord 
our  God  shall  call."  A  cts  2 : 38,  39. 

In  immediate  connection  with  the  scenes  of  the  great  day  of  God, 
the  Lord  by  the  prophet  Joel  has  promised  a  special  manifestation  of  his 
Spirit.  Joel  2: 28.  This  prophecy  received  a  partial  fulfillment  in 
the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  on  the  day  of  Pentecost;  but  it  will  reach 
its  full  accomplishment  in  the  manifestation  of  divine  grace  which  will 
attend  the  closing  work  of  the  gospel. 

The  great  controversy  between  good  and  evil  will  increase  in  in- 
tensity to  the  very  close  of  time.  In  all  ages  the  wrath  of  Satan  has 
been  manifested  against  the  church  of  Christ;  and  God  has  bestowed 
his  grace  and  Spirit  upon  his  people  to  strengthen  them  to  stand 
against  the  power  of  the  evil  one.  When  the  apostles  of  Christ  were 
to  bear  his  gospel  to  the  world  and  to  record  it  for  all  future  ages, 
they  were  especially  endowed  with  the  enlightenment  of  the  Spirit, 
But  as  the  church  approaches  her  final  deliverance,  Satan  is  to  work 
with  greater  power,  lie  comes  down  "having  great  wrath,  because 
he  knoweth  that  he  hath  but  a  short  time."  Rev.  12:12.  He  will 
work  "with  all  power  and  signs  and  lying  wonders.''  2  Thess.  2:9. 
For  six  thousand  years  that  master-mind  that  once  was  highest  among 
the  angels  of  God,  has  been  wholly  bent  to  the  work  of  deception  and 
ruin.  And  all  the  depths  of  Satanic  skill  and  subtlety  acquired,  all 
the  cruelty  developed,  during  these  struggles  of  the  ages,  will  be  brought 
to  bear  against  God's  people  in  the  final  conflict.  And  in  this  time  of 
peril  the  followers  of  Christ  are  to  bear  to  the  world  the  warning  of 
the  Lord's  second  advent;  and  a  people  are  to  be  prepared  to  stand 
before  him  at  his  coming.  "  without  spot  and  blameless."  2  Pet. .'!.  1--I. 
At  this  time  tin!  special  endowment  of  divine  grace  and  power  is  not 
••edfnl  to  the  church  than  in  apostolic'  days. 

Through  the  'Humiliation  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  scenes  of  the  long- 
continued  conflict  between  good  and  evil  have  been  opened  to  the 


PREFACE. 


writer  of  these  pages.  From  time  to  time  I  have  been  permitted  to 
behold  the  working,  in  different  ages,  of  the  great  controversy  between 
Christ,  the  Prince  of  life,  the  author  of  our  salvation,  and  Satan,  the 
prince  of  evil,  the  author  of  sin,  the  first  transgressor  of  God's  holy  law. 
Satan's  enmity  against  Christ  has  been  manifested  against  his  fol- 
lowers. The  same  hatred  of  the  principles  of  God's  law,  the  same 
policy  of  deception,  by  which  error  is  made  to  appear  as  truth,  by 
which  human  laws  are  substituted  for  the  law  of  God,  and  men  are 
led  to  worship  the  creature  rather  than  the  Creator,  may  be  traced  in 
all  the  history  of  the  past.  Satan's  efforts  to  misrepresent  the  char- 
acter of  God,  to  cause  men  to  cherish  a  false  conception  of  the  Creator, 
and  thus  to  regard  him  with  fear  and  hate  rather  than  with  love,  his 
endeavors  to  set  aside  the  divine  law,  leading  the  people  to  think  them- 
selves free  from  its  requirements,  and  his  persecution  of  those  who 
dare  to  resist  his  deceptions,  have  been  steadfastly  pursued  in  all  ages. 
They  may  be  traced  in  the  history  of  patriarchs,  prophets,  and  apostles, 
of  martyrs  and  reformers. 

In  the  great  final  conflict,  Satan  will  employ  the  same  policy,  mani- 
fest the  same  spirit,  and  work  for  the  same  end,  as  in  all  preceding  ages. 
That  which  has  been,  will  be,  except  that  the  coming  struggle  will  be 
marked  with  a  terrible  intensity  such  as  the  world  has  never  witnessed. 
Satan's  deceptions  will  be  more  subtle,  his  assaults  more  determined.  If 
it  were  possible,  he  would  lead  astray  the  elect.  Mark  13 : 22,  Revised 
Version. 

As  the  Spirit  of  God  has  opened  to  my  mind  the  great  truths  of  his 
Word,  and  the  scenes  of  the  past  and  the  future,  I  have  been  bidden 
to  make  known  to  others  what  has  thus  been  revealed, — to  trace  the 
history  of  the  controversy  in  past  ages,  and  especially  to  so  present  it 
as  to  shed  a  light  on  the  fast-approaching  struggle  of  the  future.  In 
pursuance  of  this  purpose,  I  have  endeavored  to  select  and  group  to- 
gether events  in  the  history  of  the  church  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
trace  the  unfolding  of  the  great  testing  truths  that  at  different  periods 
have  been  given  to  the  world,  that  have  excited  the  wrath  of  Satan,  and 
the  enmity  of  a  world-loving  church,  and  that  have  been  maintained 
by  the  witness  of  those  who  "loved  not  their  lives  unto  the  death." 

In  these  records  we  may  see  a  foreshadowing  of  the  conflict  before 
us.  Regarding  them  in  the  light  of  God's  Word,  and  by  the  illumina- 
tion of  his  Spirit,  we  may  see  unveiled  the  devices  of  the  wicked  one, 
and  the  dangers  which  they  must  shun  who  would  be  found  "  without 
fault"  before  the  Lord  at  his  coming. 

The  great  events  which  have  marked  the  progress  of  reform  in  past 
ages,  are  matters  of  history,  well  known  and  universally  acknowledged 
by  the  Protestant  world ;  they  are  facts  which  none  can  gainsay.  This 
history  I  have  presented  briefly,  in  accordance  with  the  scope  of  the 


book,  and  the  brevity  which  must  necessarily  be  observed,  the  facts 
having  been  condensed  into  as  little  space  as  seemed  consistent  with 
a  proper  understanding  of  their  application.  In  some  cases  where  a 
historian  has  so  grouped  together  events  as  to  afford,  in  Drief,  a  com- 
prehensive view  of  the  subject,  or  lias  summarized  details  in  a  con- 
venient manner,  his  words  have  been  quoted;  but  except  in  a  few  in- 
stances no  specific  credit  has  been  given,  since  they  are  not  quoted  for 
the  purpose  of  citing  that  writer  as  authority,  but  because  his  state- 
ment affords  a  ready  and  forcible  presentation  of  the  subject.  In  nar- 
rating the  experience  and  view's  of  those  carrying  forward  the  work  of 
reform  in  our  own  time,  similar  use  has  occasionally  been  made  of 
their  published  works. 

It  is  not  so  much  the  object  of  this  book  to  present  new  truths  con- 
cerning the  struggles  of  former  times,  as  to  bring  out  facts  and  princi- 
ples which  have  a  bearing  upon  coming  events.  Yet  viewed  as  a  part 
of  the  controversy  between  the  forces  of  light  and  darkness,  all  these 
records  of  the  past  are  seen  to  have  a  new  significance;  and  through 
them  a  light  is  cast  upon  the  future,  illumining  the  pathway  of  those 
who,  like  the  reformers  of  past  ages,  will  be  called,  even  at  the  peril  of 
all  earthly  good,  to  witness  "  for  the  Word  of  God,  and  for  the  testi- 
mony of  Jesus  Christ." 

To  unfold  the  scenes  of  the  great  controversy  between  truth  and 
error;  to  reveal  the  wiles  of  Satan,  and  the  means  by  which  he  may 
be  successfully  resisted ;  to  present  a  satisfactory  solution  of  the  great 
problem  of  evil,  shedding  such  a  light  upon  the  origin  and  the  final 
disposition  of  sin  as  to  fully  make  manifest  the  justice  and  benevo- 
lence of  God  in  all  his  dealings  with  his  creatures;  and  to  show  the 
noly,  unchanging  nature  of  his  law,  is  the  object  of  this  book. 
That  through  its  influence  souls  may  be  delivered  from  the  power  of 
darkness,  and  become  "partakers  of  the  inheritance  of  the  saints  in 
light,"  to  the  praise  of  Him  who  loved  us,  and  gave  himself  for  ns,  is 
the  earnest  prayer  of  the  writer. 

1  •:.  (  K  AY. 

1 1 1:  \ I.DSBURG,  CA r,.,  1 
May,  1888.          ] 

(h) 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM. 

THE  Siege  and  Overthrow  Foretold.— Glory  of  the  Chosen  City.— The  Tri- 
umphal Entry. — The  Son  of  God  Overwhelmed  with  Anguish. — Unbe- 
lief a*d  Ingratitude  of  Israel. — Jerusalem  a  Symbol  of  the  World. — 
A  Twofold  Prophecy. — Christ  Warns  his  Followers. — Potents  of  Dis- 
aster.— Escape  of  the  Christians. — The  Siege  by  Titus. — Famine  and 
Suffering.— The  Sanctuary  in  Flames— The  City  Demolished.— 
Slaughter  and  Captivity  of  the  people. — A  Symbol  of  the  Final  De- 
struction   17-38 

CHAPTER  II. 
PERSECUTION  IN  THE  FIRST  CENTURIES. 

PAGANISM  against  Christianity. — First  Martyrs  for  the  Faith. — The  Cata- 
combs a  Refuge. — Peace  Purchased  by  Compromise. — The  Leaven  of 
Idolatry. — Separation  of  the  Faithful. — Why  the  Gospel  Occasions 
Strife ". 39-48 

CHAPTER  HI. 
THE  APOSTASY. 

THE  Rise  of  the  Papacy  Foretold. — Suppression  of  the  Scriptures. — The 
Rites  of  Heathenism  Adopted. — The  Change  of  God's  Command- 
ments.— Establishment  of  Romanism. — Beginning  of  the  Dark  Ages. 
—Infallibility  of  the  Church.— The  Power  of  the  Pope.— Henry  IV. 
at  Canossa. — The  Boast  of  Gregory  VII. — Pagan  and  Papal  Errors. — 
The  Inquisition.— The  World  under  the  Rule  of  Rome 49-60 

CHAPTER  IV. 
THE  WALDENSES. 

CHRISTIANS  in  the  Dark  Ages. — The  Gospel  in  Great  Britian. — Columbaat 
lona. — The  Saxons  Embrace  Romanism.— Extermination  of  the 
Primitive  Church. — The  People  of  Piedmont  and  the  Papal  Power. — 
The  Protesters  Flee  to  the  Mountains.— The  Waldensian  Bible.— The 
Youth  Trained  for  Trial. — Missionaries  in  Disguise. — Crusades  against 
the  Vaudois. — The  Bull  of  Extermination. — Seed  for  the  Reforma- 
tion  61-78 

(v) 


vi  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 
JOHN  WYCLIFFE. 

TOKENS  of  Light.— The  Morning  Star  of  the  Reformation.— Wyclifle's  Tal- 
ents and  Education. — His  Study  of  the  Scriptures. — The  Pope's  De- 
mand for  Tribute. — Wycliffe  and  the  Friars. — Ambassador  to  the 
Netherlands. — He  Rebukes  the  Greed  of  Rome. — His  Death  Decreed. 
— God's  Overruling  Providences. — The  Rival  Popes. — Wycliffe  Trans- 
lates the  Bible. — His  Arraignment  before  Three  Tribunals. — His 
Triumphant  Defense. — Is  Summoned  to  Rome. — His  Letter  to  the 
Pope. — Close  of  Wyeliffe's  Life. — Persecution  of  the  Lollards. — The 
Reformer's  Work  not  Destroyed *...  79-96 

CHAPTER  VI. 
HUSS  AND  JEROME. 

THE  Gpspel  in  Bohemia. — Corruptions  of  the  Hierarchy. — Denounced  by 
Huss. — Prague  under  Interdict. — Jerome  Unites  with  Huss. — Council 
at  Constance. — Imprisonment  of  Huss. — A  Prophetic  Dream. — The 
Reformer  Burned  at  the  Stake. — Arrest  of  Jerome. — Long  Imprison- 
ment and  Torture. — He  Recants. — He  Re-affirms  his  Faith. — His 
Noble  Defense  and  Triumphant  Death. — Pope  and  Emperor  Unite 
against  Bohemia. — The  Invading  Armies  Routed. — Rome  Resorts  to 
Policy. — Treaty  with  the  Bohemians. — Persecution  of  the  Faithful. 
—The  Church  of  the  Alps 97-119 

CHAPTER  VII. 
LUTHER'S  SEPARATION  FROM  ROME. 

Lt'TiiER  the  Man  for  his  Time. — Early  Life. — Severe  Discipline. — At  the 
University. — Discovery  of  the  Bible.— Conviction  of  Sin. — He  En- 
ters a  Cloister. — The  Chained  Bible. — Ordination  as  a  Priest. — Called 
to  Wittenberg. — Visit  to  Rome. — Justification  by  Faith. — Rome's 
Traffic  in  the  Grace  of  God.— Tetzel  and  the  Indulgences.— The 
Ninety-five  Theses. — Melancthon  Unites  in  Reform. — Luther  at 
Augsburg. — Papal  Plots. — Frederick  of  Saxony  his  Protector. — The 
Reformer  Excommunicated.— Truth  Opposed  in  All  Ages 120-144 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET. 

CHARLES  V.  and  the  Emissaries  of  Rome. — Demand  for  Luther's  Execu- 
tion.— The  Legate's  Speech.— Duke  George  and  the  Papal  Abuses. — 
The  Reformer  Summoned  to  Worms. — Welcome  at  Erfurt  —  T:-each- 


CONTENTS.  .  vn 

ery  Foiled. — Entry  to  Worms. — Before  the  Diet. — Luther's  Prayer. — 
Second  Appearance  at  the  Diet.— Refusal  to  Retract.— The  Emperor's 
Message.  Efforts  for  Compromise  Unavailing. — Luther's  Departure 
from  Worms.— Condemned  and  Outlawed. — A  Prisoner  in  the  Wart- 
burg 145-170 

CHAPTER  -IX. 

THE  SWISS  REFORMER. 

GOD'S  Choice  of  Instrumentalities. — Youth  of  Ulric  Zw ingle. —Efforts  to 
Make  him  a  Monk. — His  Work  in  the  Alpine  Parish. — Proclaiming 
the  Truth  at  Einsiedeln. — Labors  at  Zurich. — Sale  of  Luther's  Writ- 
ings;— Indulgences  Condemned. — The  "  Great  Death  "  Plague.— Fruits 
of  the  Gospel. — Discussion  at  Baden. — Eck  and  CEcolampadius. — 
Bern  and  Basel  Declare  for  the  Reformation 171-184 

CHAPTER  X. 
PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY. 

EFFECT  of  Luther's  Disappearance. — The  Reformation  still  Advanc- 
ing.—Pretended  Prophets.— They  Set  Aside  the  Bible.— The  Refor- 
mation on  the  Verge  of  Ruin. — Luther's  Return  to  Wittenberg. — 
Fanaticism  Checked. — Its  Subsequent  Revival. — Munzer  and  his 
Teaching. — Sedition  and  Bloodshed. — Not  Chargeable  to  the  Refor- 
mation.— Translation  of  the  Bible. — The  Work  of  Colporters. — Spread 
of  the  True  Faith .; 185-196 

CHAPTER  XL 
PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES. 

THE  Diet  of.  Spires. — A  Dark  Day  for  the  Reformation. — The  Imperial 
Message. — Religious  Toleration  Forbidden. — The  Protest. — Impor 
tanceof  its  Principles.— Danger  to  the  Protesters. — Escape  ofGrynaeus. 
— The  Diet  at  Augsburg. — The  Protestant  Confession. — Faith  ami 
Courage  of  the  Princes. — Before  the  Emperor. — A  Glorious  Victory. 
—Prayer  the  Reformers'  Strength 197-210 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  FRENCH  REFORMATION. 

DAWN  of  the  Truth  in  France. — The  Work  of  Lefevre. — Farel's  Conver- 
sion.— The  New  Testament  Published  at  Meux. — Rage  of  the  Hier- 
archy.— The  Stake  Set  Up.— Louis  Berquin. — The  Mutilated  Image. 
— A  Noble  Martyr. — Scenes  of  the  Revolution  Foreshadowed. — John 
Calvin. — Protection  through  the  Princess  Margaret. — Preaching  at 


CONTENTS. 


the  Palace.— Paris  Moved  by  the  Word  of  God.— The  Truth  Rejected 
— Posting  of  the  Placards. — France  Pledged  to  Exterminate  the 
Heresy. — Flight  of  the  Huguenots. — Farel  in  Switzerland. — The 
Gospel  at  Geneva. — Rise  of  the  Jesuits. — The  Inquisition  Re-estab- 
lished.—Geneva  and  the  Reformation 211-236 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  AND  SCANDINAVIA. 

PROTEST  in  the  Netherlands. — The  Waldensian  Bible  Translated. — Menno 
Simons. — Edicts  of  Persecution. — Atrocities  of  the  Spanish  Kings.— 
The  Reformer  of  Denmark. — The  Work  in  Sweden. — Olaf  and  Laren- 
tius  Petri. — Sweden  a  Bulwark  of  Protestantism. — The  Thirty  Years' 
War.— Germany  Saved  from  Popery 237-244 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
LATER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS. 

TYNDALE  Translates  the  Bible. — Opposition  to  his  Work.— He  Flees  to 
Germany. — Printing  the  New  Testament. — Its  Introduction  into 
England. — Tyndale's  Imprisonment  and  Martyrdom. — Latimer  De- 
fends the  Bible. — Other  Reformers. — The  Bible  in  Scotland. — John 
Knox.— Before  Queen  Mary. — The  Established  Church  in  England. 
— Dissenters  Persecuted. — John  Bunyan.— Baxter,  Flavel,  Alleine.— 
Great  Religious  Declension. — Whitefield  and  the  Wesley s.— Early 
Experiences. — The  Doctrine  of  Faith. — Moravian  Teachers.— A  Light 
from  Bohemia. — Conversion  of  the  Wesleys.— Power  and  Success  of 
their  Ministry. — Persecution  of  the  Methodists. — Wesley  and  An- 
tinomianism 245-264 

CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION. 
REJECTION  of  Light. — Results  of  Suppressing  the  Scriptures. — Prophecy  of 
the  Work  of  France.— The  Two  Witnesses.— National  Atheism.— Ac- 
tion of  the  French  Assembly.— The  Marriage  Relation  Degraded. — 
Christ  Crucified  in  his  Followers. — St.  Bartholomew  Massacre  an  Ex- 
ample.— War  against  the  Bible. — Blasphemous  Rites. — The  Goddess 
of  Reason. — Romanism  and  the  Revolution. — The  Reign  of  Terror. — 
Prophecy  Fulfilled.— The  Scriptures  Exalted.— Missionary  and  Bible 
Societies.— Unprecedented  Circulation  of  God's  Word 265-288 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  PILGRIM  FATHERS. 

ROMISH  Rites  in  the  Church  of  England. — Dissenters  Seek  Liberty  in 
Holland. — John  Robinson's  Address  to  the  Pilgrims. — The  True 


CONTENTS. 


Spirit  of  Reform.— The  Colonists  of  New  England.— Church,  and 
State.— Persecution  of  Roger  Williams.— He  Founds  Rhode  Island. 
—A  Church  without  a  Pope.— A  State  without  a  King.— The  Work  of 
Apostasy...... 289-298 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING. 

THE  Coming  of  Christ. — The  Hope  of  True  Believers  in  All  Ages. — Signs 
of  the  Second  Advent. — Earthquake  of  Lisbon. — The  Dark  Day. — 
Condition  of  the  World  and  the  Church  Foretold.— A  Solemn  Warning. 
-Unfaithful  Watchmen. — Israel  at  the  Birth  of  Christ,  Humble 
Shepherds  Receive  the  Glad  Tidings.— Religious  Leaders  in  Darkness. 
—Results  of  Cherishing  Light „ 299-316 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER. 

EARLY  Life  of  William  Miller. — He  Becomes  a  Deist. — His  Mental  Con- 
flicts.— His  Conversion. — His  Study  of  the  Bible. — The  Prophecies  can 
be  Understood.— The  Temporal  Millennium.— The  Personal  Advent 
of  Christ. — Chronology  of  the  Scriptures. — Miller  Presents  his  Views. 
--His  Preaching  Attended  with  Power. — Fulfillments  of  Prophecy, 
—The  Falling  of  the  Stars.— The  Fall  of  the  Ottoman  Empire.— 
Denouncement  of  Miller. — The  Warning  of  Noah. — Why  the  Doc- 
trine of  Christ's  Coming  is  Disliked.— Its  Effects  upon  Those  who  Re 
ceived  It 317-342 

CHAPTER   XIX. 
LIGHT  THROUGH  DARKNESS. 

GOD'S  Purposes  Imperfectly  Comprehended. — Doctrines  of  Men  Blind  the 
Mind. — Preaching  of  Christ's  First  Advent. — Expectation  of  the  Disci- 
ples.—Their  Disappointment  at  the  Death  of  Christ.— The  Disappoint- 
ment Explained. — The  Counterpart  of  their  Experience. — The  Mes- 
sage of  the  Second  Advent. — Disappointment  of  the  Believers. — The 
Result  of  Popular  Error 343-354 

CHAPTER  XX. 
A  GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING. 

A  STRIKING  Symbol.— The  Warning  of  the  Judgment.— Joseph  Wolff's 
Life  and  Labors. — Widespread  Expectation  of  the  Messiah's  Advent. — 
The  Message  in  England. — Bengel's  Labors  in  Germany. — Gaussen  in 
France  and  Switzerland. — Child  Preachers  in  Sweden. — The  Work  in 
America.— The  Warning  Received  by  Thousands 355-374 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 
A  WARNING   REJECTED. 

A  MARKED  Religious  Declension. — The  Result  of  Rejecting  Light. — Proph- 
ecy of  Rev.  14:8 — Symbol  Explained. — Worldliness  in  the  Church. 
— Testimonies  of  Eminent  Men. — Full  Application  of  the  Prophecy 
yet  Future 375-390 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
PROPHECIES  FULFILLED. 

HABAKKUK'S  Prophecy.— The  "Parable  of  the  Virgins.— The  Work  of  Fa- 
naticism.—The  Word  of  God  a  Test.—"  The  Midnight  Cry  ."—Type  and 
Antitype. — Character  of  the  Work. — Passing  of  the  Time. — An  Un- 
shaken Faith. — Encouragement  from  the  Word  of  God. — Waiting  for 
Light '. 391-408 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
WHAT  IS  THE  SANCTUARY? 

TERMINATION  of  the  Prophetic  Periods. — The  Earth  Not  the  Sanctuary.— 
The  Tabernacle. — The  Earthly  Sanctuary  a  Figure  of  the  Heavenly. 
— The  Mosaic  Service  a  Type. — Zechariah's  Prophecy. — The  Cleans- 
ing of  the  Sanctuary. — Mediation  of  Christ. — Close  of  the  Work  of 
the  Atonement 409-422 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
IN  THE  HOLY  OF  HOLIES. 

THE  Purpose  of  God  Fulfilled —The  Coming  of  the  Lord  to  his  Temple.— 
A  Work  of  Purification.— Parable  of  the  Virgins  Completed. — The 
Coming  of  the  Bridegroom. — Going  in  to  the  Marriage. — "  The  Door 
was  Shut."— A  Time  of  Trial 423-432 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
GOD'S  LAW  IMMUTABLE. 

THE  Temple  in  Heaven.— The  Ark  of  God's  Testament.— The  Fourth 
Commandment. — A  Threefold  Warning. — The  Standard  of  Duty.  — 
The  Foundation  of  Worship. — Symbols  of  Paganism  and  tin?  Papacy. 
— Another  Power. — Its  Peaceful  Professions. — A  Striking  Contradic- 
tion.—The  Last  Work  of  Apostasy.— The  World  Divided  into  Two 
Classes.— What  Constitutes  the  Distinction.. . ,  . .  .433-450 


CONTENTS.  xi 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 
A  WORK  OF  REFORM. 

ISAIAH'S  Prophecy  of  Reform. — "  Seal  the  Law." — The  Scripture  Explained. 
—The  Last  Church. — Distinctive  Doctrines. — The  Truth  Unwelcome. 
— Popular  Perversions  of  God's  Word. — Time-Setting  an  Error. — 
The  Cause  Retarded  by  Unbelief.— The  Duty  of  Reformers... .45 1-460 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
MODERN  REVIVALS. 

RESULTS  of  Preaching  the  Word  of  God.— A  Marked  Contrast. — Sensa- 
tionalism in  Religion. — The  Cause  of  Errors  in  Doctrine  and  Life. — 
The  Law  and  the  Gospel.— Antinomian  Teachers. — Conversion  and 
Sanctification.— The  Standard  of  Holiness.— Sanctification  a  Pro- 
gressive Work. — Temperance  and  Consecration. — The  Christian's 
Privilege „ 461-478 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
THE  INVESTIGATIVE  JUDGMENT. 

THE  Opening  of  the  Judgment.— The  Books  of  Record.— God's  Law  the 
Test  of  Character.— Christ  Our  Advocate.— Order  of  the  Judgment. — 
The  Blotting  Out  of  Sins.— Satan's  Accusations.— The  New-Covenant 
Promise. — The  Time  of  the  Judgment.— The  Anti typical  Day  of 
Atonement. — Individual  Accountability. — Probation  Nearly  Ended. 
479-491 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL. 

A  SOURCE  of  Perplexity.— God  Not  Responsible  for  Sin.— The  Universe 
before  the  Existence  of  Evil. — Lucifer,  the  "  Son  of  the  Morning." 
—His  Self-Exaltation.— His  Policy  of  Deception.— God  is  Truth.— 
His  Long-suffering  Mercy. — Revolt  and  Banishment  of  Satan. — Spirit 
of  Rebellion  among  Men. — Satan  Accuses  God  of  Injustice. — The 
Fall  of  Man. — The  Atonement  — Demonstration  of  God's  Love.— 
Christ's  Earthly  Ministry. — Satan's  Character  Unmasked. — His  De- 
struction As*sured.*-God's  Justice  Vindicated. — No  Cause  for  Sin 
Exists 492-504 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

ENMITY  BETWEEN  MAN  AND  SATAN. 

THE  First  Prophecy.— rAntagonism  between  the  Spirit  of  Christ  and  the 
Spirit  of  Satan. — Hatred  of  the  Followers  of  Christ.— Indifference  of 
Christians  to  Their  Danger.— Satan's  Tireless  Vigilance. — Effects  of 
Familiarity  with  Sin— The  Final  Conflict 505-510 


xii  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 
AGENCY  OF  EVIL  SPIRITS. 

THE  Visible  and  Invisible  Worlds  Connected.— The  Ministration  of 
Holy  Angels. — Evil  Spirits  in  League  for  Man's  Destruction. — Their 
Malignity  Manifested  in  the  Time  of  Christ. — Danger  of  Denying 
their  Existence.— The  Bible  Reveals  their  Wiles 511-517 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

SNARES  OF  SATAN. 

How  Satan's  Plans  are  Executed. — He  Prevents  Men  from  Hearing  the 
Word  of  God. — Accusers  of  the  Brethren. — Fanciful  Interpretations 
of  Scripture. — "  Science  Falsely  so  Called." — Deceptive  Doctrines. — 
.  Disbelief  in  tlje  Pre-existence  of  Christ. — Non-existence  of  Satan. — 
Coming  of  Christ  at  Death. — Miracles  Impossible. — Danger  of  Cherish- 
ing Doubt.— Uses  of  Temptation 518-530 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
THE  FIRST  GREAT  DECEPTION. 

THE  Tempter  in  Eden. — A  Plan  for  Man's  Overthrow. — Death  the  Penalty 
of  Sin. — Immortality  the  Gift  of  God. — Doctrine  of  Eternal  Torment 
Introduced. — God's  Character  Misrepresented. — A  Cause  of  Infidelity. 
— Universal  ism  the  Opposite  Error. — Salvation  Conditional. — The 
Wicked  Unfit  for  Heaven. — God's  Mercy  in  their  Destruction. — Con- 
sciousness of  the  Dead  a  Fallacy.  What  the  Bible  Teaches. — Belief 
of  Luther  and  Tyndale. — The  Judgment  and  the  Resurrection. 
.". 531-550 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 
SPIRITUALISM. 

\  vi •[  I:AI,  Immortality  its  Foundation. — Materialization  a  Counterfeit. — 
Not  the  Result  of  Trickery. — A.  Revival  of  Ancient  Witchcraft.— 
Adapted  to  Ensnare  All  Classes.  Its  Deceptions  Unveiled. ...551-562 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY. 

ROMANISM  Gaining  Favor. — A  Cause  of  Apprehension. — Pomp  and  Splen- 
dor of  her  Worship. — Contrast  between  Christ  and  the  Pope. — 
Protestants  Blinded  by  False  Charity. — The  Secret  of  Rome's  Power. 
— An  Age  of  Intellectual  Light  not  Unfavorable  to  her  Success. — 


CONTENTS.  xin 


The  Sunday  Movement. — The  First  Sunday  Law. — The  Roll  from 
Heaven. — Pretended  Miracles. — A  Remarkable  Confession. — The 
Church  of  Abyssinia. — Rome's  Enmity  toward  the  Law  of  God.— 
History  of  the  Past  to  be  Repeated. — Purpose  of  the  Romanists. 
563-581 

CHAPTER  XXXVL 
THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT— ITS  CAUSES. 

THE  Great  Controvesy  and  the  Law  of  God. — The  Last  Battle  between 
Truth  and  Error.— Rejection  of  the  Bible. — Philosophical  Idolatry. 
— Results  of  Setting  Aside  God's  Law. — Temperance  Reform  and 
the  Sunday  Movement. — Spiritualism. — Satan  Appears  as  a  Bene- 
factor.— He  Controls  the  Elements. — Terrible  Calamities. — God's 
People  will  be  Accused  as  Troublers  of  the  Nation. — Liberty  of  Con- 
science Disregarded. — Last  War  upon  the  Church 682-592 

CHAPTER  XXXVII. 
THE  SCRIPTURES  A  SAFEGUARD. 

THE  Detector  of  Error. — An  Understanding  of  the  Prophecies  Essential. 
— Danger  of  Following  Human  Leaders. — How  to  Understand  the 
Scriptures.— Why  Theologians  often  Err. — Necessity  of  Prayer. — 
Every  Character  to  be  Tested 593-602 

CHAPTER  XXXVIIL 
THE  FINAL  WARNING. 

THE  Mighty  Angel. — Application  of  his  Message. — "  The  Seal  of  God." 
— Light  for  All  who  Seek  It. — The  Experience  of  Reformers. — 
God's  Providence  in  the  National  Councils. — The  Closing  Work. — 
World-wide  Extent. — Power  and  Glory. — Fruits  of  Missionary  Ef- 
forts  603-612 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 
«  THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE." 

CHRIST'S  Ministration  Closes.— The  Wrath  of  Satan.— The  Whole  World 
against  God's  Servants. — The  Decree  of  Outlawry. — In  Peril  and 
Distress.— Illustration  from  the  Time  of  Jacob's  Trouble.— Power 
of  Importunate  Prayer. — The  Prophetic  Woe. — Supernatural  Sights 
and  Sounds. — The  Crowning  Deception. — God's  People  Forced  to 
Flee.— The  Mountains  a  Hiding-place.— Imprisonment  and  Bond 


xiv  VVNTUJNT8. 


age. — The  Righteous  not  Forsaken. — The  Unmingled  Wrath. — 
Guardian  Angels. — Their  Appearance  in  Human  Form. — -The  Prom- 
ise of  Deliverance 613-634 

CHAFFER  XL. 
GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED. 

A  MOVEMENT  for  their  Destruction. — The  Night  Attack.—  Supernat- 
ural Darkness. — The  Rainbow  of  God's  Glory. — Celestial  Voices. — 
The  Sun  at  Midnight.  -The  Voice  of  God.— A  Mighty  Earth- 
quake.— A  Special  Resurrection.— Prophetic  Portrayal. — The  Star 
of  Hope.— Revelations  in  the  Heavens. — The  Everlasting  Covenant. 
—"The  Sign  of  the  Son  of  Man."— Christ's  Coming  in  Glory.— 
Resurrection  of  the  Just. — The  Reward  of  the  Righteous. — Before 
the  Throne.— "The  Joy  of  their  Lord."— Meeting  of  the  Two 
Adams.— Eden  Restored.— The  "  New  Song."— The  Theme  of  Re- 
demption    635-652 

CHAPTER  XLI. 
DESOLATION  OF  THE  EARTH. 

GOD'S  Judgments  upon  the  Wicked. — Their  Treasures  Swept  Away.— 
False  Teachers  Exposed. — Fury  of  the  Multitudes. — Strife  and  Car- 
nage—The Earth  Made  Waste.— The  Prison-house  of  Satan.— A 
Work  of  Judgment 653-661 

CHAPTER  XLIL 
THE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED. 

CHRIST'S  Return  to  the  Earth.— The  Resurrection  of  the  Wicked.— The 
Mount  of  Olives. — Descent  of  the  New  Jerusalem. — Satan's  Last 
Struggle. — Christ  upon  the  Throne  of  his  Glory — The  Final  Cor- 
onation— The  Judgment  of  the  Wicked. — The  Books  of  Record. — 
A  Panoramic  Portrayal. — The  Scenes  of  Redemption. — The  Cross  of 
Calvary. — Results  of  Rebellion. — God's  Justice  Made  Manifest.— The 
Fire  of  Destruction. — Evil  Annihilated.  The  Home  of  the  Saved. 
—The  City  of  God.— The  Universal  Anthem 662-678 

GENERAL  NOTES 679-691 

P.io.  UAPHICAL  NOTES..  G92-70J 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


P^GE. 

JERUSALEM  FROM  THE  MOUNT  OF  OLIVES Frontispiece 

THE  BURNING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 17 

THI:  TEMPLE  AND   ITS  COURTS 24 

MARTYRDOM  OP  THE  EARLY  CHRISTIANS  39 

CHRISTIAN'S  WORSHIPING  IN  THE  CATACOMBS 40 

ST.  PETER'S  CHURCH,  AT  ROME -49 

PFXANCE  OF  HENRY  IV.  AT  CANOSSA 58 

WALDENSIAN  MISSIONARIES 70 

\VYCLIFPE,  Huss,  JEROME,  ZWINGLE,  (ECOLAMPADIUS 79 

WVCLIFFE   AND   THE    FRIARS 88 

IIuss  IN  PRISON 106 

JEROME  LED  TO  MARTYRDOM 114 

LUTHER,  CALVIN,  FAREL,  MELANCTHON,  FREDERICK  OF  SAXONY -    120 

LUTHER'S  PROTEST  AGAINST  INDULGENCES 130 

LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET 156 

Swiss  REFORMERS  PREACHING  IN  THE  FIELDS 171 

LUTHER  AT  THE  WARTBURG 185 

READING  THE  PROTEST  AT  THE  DIET  OF  SPIRES 202 

FRANCIS  I.  AS  A  PENITENT 228 

TYNDALE,  KNOX,  LATIMER,  RIDLEY,  Wi  HART,  CRANMER 245 

WI.SLEY,  BAXTER,  BUNYAN,  MILLER,  WHITEFIELD 253 

POPE  Pius  VI.  TAKEN  PRISONER  IN  1798 266 

THE  ST.  BARTHOLOMEW  MASSACRE 272 

THE  GODDESS  OF  REASON 276 

STREET  SCENE  IN  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION 282 

THE  SIGNS  OF  His  COMING 306 

DIAGRAM  OF  THE  70  WEKK.S  AND  THE  2300  DAYS 328 

THE  DISAPPOINTMENT  OF  THE  DISCIPLES 344 

JOSEPH  WOLFF  AMONG  THE  ARABS 360 

CHILD-PREACHING  IN  SWEDEN. 366 

ON  THE  DAY  OF  ATONEMENT 420 

CHRIST  HEALING  THE  DEMONIAC 514 

PROCLAIMING  THE  DOGMA  OF  PAPAL  INFALLIBILITY  AT  ROME 563 

INTERIOR  OF  THE  CHURCH  OF  ST.  JOHN  LATERAN 566 

CATHOLIC  CHURCHES  AND  SCHOOLS 572 

BEFORE  THE  INQUISITORS 580 

ELEMENTS  OF  DESTRUCTION 590 

THE  GREAT  EARTHQUAKE 636 

THE  DOMINION  RESTORED.,. 676 

txv) 

OF    THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


V3 

OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


CHAPTER    L 


DESTRUCTION    OF   JERUSALEM. 

"  IF  thou  hadst  known,  even  thou,  at  least  in  this  thy  day, 
the  things  which  belong  unto  thy  peace!  but  now  they  are 
hid  from  thine  eyes.  For  the  days  shall  come  upon  thee, 
that  thine  enemies  shall  cast  a  trench  about  thee,  and  com- 
pass thee  round,  and  keep  thee  in  on  every  side,  and  shall 
lay  thee  even  with  the  ground,  and  thy  children  within 
thee ;  and  they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  one  stone  upon  another; 
because  thou  knewest  not  the  time  of  thy  visitation."1 

From  the  crest  of  Olivet,  Jesus  looked  upon  Jerusalem. 
Fair  and  peaceful  was  the  scene  spread  out  before  him.  It 
was  the  season  of  the  Passover,  and  from  all  lands  the  chil- 
dren of  Jacob  had  gathered  there  to  celebrate  the  great  na- 
tional festival.  In  the  midst  of  gardens  and  vineyards,  and 
green  slopes  studded  with  pilgrims'  tents,  rose  the  terraced 
hills,  the  stately  palaces,  and  massive  bulwarks  of  Israel's 
capital.  The  daughter  of  Zion  seemed  in  her  pride  to  say, 
"  I  sit  a  queen,  and  shall  see  no  sorrow; "  as  lovely  then,  and 
deeming  herself  as  secure  in  Heaven's  favor,  as  when,  ages 
before,  the  royal  minstrel  sung,  "  Beautiful  for  situation,  the 
joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  Mount  Zion,"  "  the  city  of  the  great 
King."2  In  full  view  were  the  magnificent  buildings  of  the 
temple.  The  rays  of  the  setting  sun  lighted  up  the  snowy 

i  Luke  19 : 42-44.  a  Ps.  48 .  2. 

(17) 


18  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

whiteness  of  its  marble  walls,  and  gleamed  from  golden,  gate 
and  tower  and  pinnacle.  "  The  perfection  of  beauty"  it  stood, 
the  pride  of  the  Jewish  nation.  AVhat  child  of  Israel  could 
gaze  upon  the  scene  without  a  thrill  of  joy  and  admiration! 
But  far  other  thoughts  occupied  the  mind  of  Jesus.  "When 
he  was  come  near,  he  beheld  the  city,  and  wept  over  it."1 
Amid  the  universal  rejoicing  of  the  triumphal  entry,  while 
palm  branches  waved,  while  glad  hosannas  awoke  the  echoes 
of  the  hills,  and  thousands  of  voices  declared  him  king,  the 
world's  Redeemer  was  overwhelmed  with  a  sudden  and  mys- 
terious sorrow.  He,  the  Son  of  God,  the  Promised  One  of 
Israel,  whose  power  had  conquered  death,  and  called  its 
captives  from  the  grave,  was  in  tears,  not  of  ordinary  grief, 
but  of  intense,  irrepressible  agony. 

His  tears  were  not  for  himself,  though  he  well  knew  whither 
his  feet  were  tending.  Before  him  lay  Gethsemane,  the  scene 
of  his  approaching  agony.  The  sheep  gate  also  was  in  sight, 
through  wThich  for  centuries  the  victims  for  sacrifice  had  been 
led,  and  which  was  to  open  for  him  when  he  should  be 
"brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter."5  Not  far  distant 
was  Calvary,  the  place  of  crucifixion.  Upon  the  path  which 
Christ  was  soon  to  tread  must  fall  the  horror  of  great  dark- 
ness as  he  should  make  his  soul  an  offering  for  sin.  Yet 
it  was  not  the  contemplation  of  these  scenes  that  cast  the 
shadow  upon  him  in  this  hour  of  gladness.  No  foreboding 
of  his  own  superhuman  anguish  clouded  that  unselfish 
spirit.  He  wept  for  the  doomed  thousands  of  Jerusalem— 
l>e<-ause  of 'the  blindness  and  impenitence  of  those  whom 
he  came  to  bless  and  to  save. 

The  history  of  more  than  a  thousand  years  of  (iod's  spe- 
cial favor  and  guardian  care,  manifested  to  tin- chosen  peo- 
ple, was  open  to  (he  eye  of  Jesus.  There  was  Mount  Moriah, 
where  the  sou  <>f  promise,  an  unresisting  victim,  had  been 
bound  to  the  altar,— emblem  of  the  offering  of  the  Son  ot 
( Jod.a  There,  the  covenant  of  blessing,  the  glorious  Messianic 

1  Luke  19  :  4L  *  Isa,  53  :  7.  s  Oun.  22  :  9. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  19 


promise,  had  been  confirmed  to  the  father  of  the«  faithful.1 
There  the  flames  of  the  sacrifice  ascending  to  heaven  from 
the  threshing-floor  of  Oman  had  turned  aside  the  sword  of 
the  destroying  angel  '2 — fitting  symbol  of  the  Saviour's  sacri- 
fice and  mediation  for  guilty  men.  Jerusalem  had  been 
honored  of  God  above  all  the  earth.  The  Lord  had  "  chosen 
Zion,"  he  had  "desired  it  for  his  habitation."'  There,  for 
Mges,  holy  prophets  had  uttered  their  messages  of  warning. 
There,  priests  had  waved  their  censers,  and  the  cloud  of 
incense,  with  the  prayers  of  the  worshipers,  had  ascended 
before  God.  There  daily  the  blood  of  slain,  lambs  had  been 
offered,  pointing  forward  to  the  Lamb  of  God.  There,  Je- 
hovah had  revealed  his  presence  in  the  cloud  of  glory  above 
the  mercy-seat.  There  rested  the  base  of  that  mystic  ladder 
connecting  earth  with  Heaven,4 — that  ladder  upon  which 
angels  of  God  descended  and  ascended,  and  which  opened 
to  the  world  the  way  into  the  holiest  of  all.  Had  Israel  as 
a  nation  preserved  her  allegiance  to  Heaven,  Jerusalem 
would  have  stood  forever,  the  elect  of  God.5  But  the  history 
of  that  favored  people  was  a  record  of  backsliding  and  re- 
bellion. They  had  resisted  Heaven's  grace,  abused  their 
privileges,  and  slighted  their  opportunities. 

Although  Israel  had  "  mocked  the  messengers  of  God,  and 
despised  his  words,  and  misused  his  prophets," 6  he  had  still 
manifested  himself  to  them,  as  "the  Lord  God,  merciful 
and  gracious,  long-suffering,  and  abundant  in  goodness  and 
truth;"7  notwithstanding  repeated  rejections,  his  mercy  had 
continued  its  pleadings.  With  more  than  a  father's  pitying 
love  for  the  son  of  his  care,.  God  had  "  sent  to  them  by  his 
messengers,  rising  up  betimes,  and  sending ;  because  he  had 
compassion  on  his  people,  and  on  his  dwelling-place."6 
When  remonstrance,  entreaty,  and  rebuke  had  failed,  he 
sent  to  them  the  best  gift  of  Heaven;  nay,  he  poured  out 
all  Heaven  in  that  one  gift. 

1  Gen.  22  :  10-18.    2 1  Chron .  21.   3  Ps.  132  :  1 3.    <  Gen.  28  :  12 ; 
*  John  1  : 51.   5  Jer.  17  : 21-25.   62  Chron.  36  : 15,  16.   7  Ex.  34  :  6. 


20  TEE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  Son  of  God  himself  was  sent  to  plead  with  the  iin- 
penitent  city.  It  was  Christ  that  had  brought  Israel  as  a 
goodly  vine  out  of  Egypt.1  His  own  hand  had  cast  out  the 
heathen  before  it.  He  had  planted  it  "in  a  very  fruitful 
hill." a  His  guardian  care  had  hedged  it  about.  His  serv- 
ants had  been  sent  to  nurture  it.  "  What  could  have  been 
done  more  to  my  vineyard,"  he  exclaims,  "  that  I  have 
not  done  in  it  ?  "  2  Though  when  he  "  looked  that  it  should 
bring  forth  grapes,  it  brought  forth  wild  grapes/' 2  yet  with 
a  still  yearning  hope  of  fruitfulness  he  came  in  person  to 
his  vineyard,  if  haply  it  might  be  saved  from  destruction. 
He  digged  about  his  vine;  he  pruned  and  cherished  it.  lie 
was  unwearied  «in  his  efforts  to  save  this  vine  of  his  own 
planting. 

For  three  years  the  Lord  of  light  and  glory  had  gone  in 
and  out  among  his  people.  "He  went  about  doing  good," 
"healing  all  that  were  oppressed  of  the  devil,"3  binding  up 
the  broken-hearted,  setting  at  liberty  them  that  were  bound, 
restoring  sight  to  the  blind,  causing  the  lame  to  walk  and 
the  deaf  to  hear,  cleansing  the  lepers,  raising  the  dead,  and 
preaching  the  gospel  to  the  poor.3  To  all  classes  alike 
was  addressed  the  gracious  call,  "  Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that 
labor  and  are  heavy-laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  * 

Though  rewarded  with  evil  for  good,  and  hatred  for  his 
love,5  he  had  steadfastly  pursued  his  mission  of  mercy. 
Never  were  those  repelled  that  sought  his  grace.  A  home- 
less wanderer,  reproach  and  penury  his  daily  lot,  he  lived 
to  minister  to  the  needs  and  lighten  the  woes  of  men,  to 
plead  with  them  to  accept  the  gift  of  life.  The  waves  of 
mercy,  beaten  back  by  those  stubborn  hearts,  returned  in  a 
stronger  tide  of  pitying,  inexpressible  love.  Hut  Israel  had 
turned  from  her  best  friend  and  only  helper.  The  pleadings 
of  his  love  had  been  despised,  his  counsels  spurned,  his  warn- 
ings ridiculed. 

'Ps.80:8.       2Isa.5:l-4.       8  Acts  10  : 35;  Luke  4  :  IS;  .Mutt.  11  : 5. 
4  Matt.  11:28.  6Ps.   109:5. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  21 

The  hour  of  hope  and  pardon  was  fast  passing;  the  cup  of 
God's  long-deferred  wrath  was  almost  full.  The  cloud  that 
had  been  gathering  through  ages  of  apostasy  and  rebellion, 
now  black  with  woe  was  about  to  burst  upon  a  guilty  people, 
and  He  who  alone  could  save  them  from  their  impending 
fate  had  been  slighted,  abused,  rejected,  and  was  soon  to  be 
crucified.  When  Christ  should  hang  upon  the  cross  of 
Calvary,  Israel's  day  as  a  nation  favored  and  blessed  of 
God  would  be  ended.  The  loss  of  even  one  soul  is  a  calam- 
ity, infinitely  outweighing  the  gains  and  treasures  of  a  world ; 
but  as  Christ  looked  upon  Jerusalem,  the  doom  of  a  whole 
city,  a  whole  nation,  was  before  him;  that  city,  that  nation 
which  had  once  been  the  chosen  of  God, —  his  peculiar 
treasure. 

Prophets  had  wept  over  the  apostasy  of  Israel,,  and  the 
terrible  desolations  by  which  their  sins  were  visited.  Jere- 
miah wished  that  his  eyes  were  a  fountain  of  tears,  that  he 
might  weep  day  and  night  for  the  slain  of  the  daughter 
of  his  people,  for  the  Lord's  flock  that  was  carried  away  cap- 
tive.1 What,  then,  was  the  grief  of  Him  whose  prophetic 
glance  took  in,  not  years,  but  ages !  He  beheld  the  destroy- 
ing angel  with  sword  uplifted  against  the  city  which  had  so 
long  been  Jehovah's  dwelling-place.  From  the  ridge  of 
Olivet,  the  very  spot  afterward  occupied  by  Titus  and  his 
army,  he  looked  across  the  valley  upon  the  sacred  courts 
and  porticoes,  and  with  tear-dimmed  eyes  he  saw,  in  awful 
perspective,  the  walls  surrounded  by  alien  hosts.  He  heard 
the  tread  of  armies  marshaling  for  war.  He  heard  the  voice 
of  mothers  and  children  crying  for  bread  in  the  besieged 
city.  He  saw  her  holy  and  beautiful  house,  her  palaces  and 
towers,  given  to  the  flames,  and  where  once  they  stood,  only 
a  heap  of  smouldering  ruins. 

Looking  down  the  ages,  he  saw  the  covenant  people  scat- 
tered in  every  land,  "like  wrecks  on  a  desert  shore."  In  the 
temporal  retribution  about  to  fall  upon  her  children,  he  saw 

:l:  13:17. 


22  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

but  the  first  draught  from  that  cup  of  wrath  which  at  the 
final  Judgment  she  must  drain  to  its  dregs.  Divine  pity, 
yearning  love,  found  utterance  in  the  mournful  words:  "  '0 
Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  thou  that  killest  the  prophets,  and 
stonest  them  which  are  sent  unto  thee,  how  often  would  I 
have  gathered  thy  children  together,  even  as  a  hen  gathereth 
her  chickens  under  her  wings,  and  ye  would  not ! ' 1  Oh 
that  thou,  a  nation  favored  above  every  other,  hadst  known 
the  time  of  thy  visitation,  and  the  things  that  belong  unto 
thy  peace  !  I  have  stayed  the  angel  of  justice,  I  have  called 
thee  to  repentance,  but  in  vain.  It  is  not  merely  servants, 
delegates,  and  prophets,  whom  thou  hast  refused  and  re- 
jected, but  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  thy  Redeemer.  If  thou 
art  destroyed,  thou  alone  art  responsible.  '  Ye  will  not  come 
to  me,  that  ye  might  have  life.' " 

Christ  saw  in  Jerusalem  a  symbol  of  the  world  hardened 
in  unbelief  and  rebellion,  and  hastening  on  to  meet  the 
retributive  judgments  of  God.  The  woes  of  a  fallen  race, 
pressing  upon  his  soul,  forced  from  his  lips  that  exceeding 
bitter  cry.  He  saw  the  record  of  sin  traced  in  human  misery, 
tears,  and  blood;  his  heart  was  moved  with  infinite  pity 
for  the  afflicted  and  suffering  ones  of  earth;  he  yearned  to 
relieve  them  all.  But  even  his  hand  might  not  turn  back 
the  tide  of  human  woe ;  few  would  seek  their  only  source  of 
help.  He  was  willing  to  pour  out  his  soul  unto  death,  to 
bring  salvation  within  their  reach  ;  but  few  would  come  to 
him  that  they  might  have  life. 

The  Majesty  of  Heaven  -in  tears!  the  Son  of  the  infinite 
God  troubled  in  spirit,  bowed  down  with  anguish!  The 
scene  filled  all  Heaven  with  wonder.  That  scene  reveals  to 
us  the  exceeding  sinfulness  of  sin;  it  shows  how  hard  a 
task  it  is,  even  for  infinite  power,  to  save  the  guilty  from  the 
consequences  of  transgressing  the  law  of  (iod.  .Jesus,  look- 
ing down  to  the  last  generation,  saw  the  world  involved  in 
a  deception  similar  to  that  which  caused  the  destruction  of 

iMatt.  23:37.  » John  5: 40. 


DESTRUCTION    OF  JERUSALEM.  23 

Jerusalem.  The  great  sin  of  the  Jews  was  their  rejection  of 
Christ;  the  great  sin  of  the  Christian  world  would  be  their 
rejection  of  the  law  of  God,  the  foundation  of  his  govern- 
ment in  Heaven  and  earth.  The  precepts  of  Jehovah  would 
be  despised  and  set  at  naught.  Millions  in  bondage  to  sin, 
slaves  of  Satan,  doomed  to  suffer  the  second  death,  would 
refuse  to  listen  to  the  words  of  truth  in  their  day  of  visit- 
ation. Terrible  blindness !  strange  infatuation ! 

Two  days  before  the  Passover,  when  Christ  had  for  the 
last  time  departed  from  the  temple,  after  denouncing  the 
hypocrisy  of  the  Jewish  rulers,  he  again  went  out  with  his 
disciples  to  the  Mount  of  Olives,  and  seated  himself  with 
them  upon  a  grassy  slope  overlooking  the  city.  Once  more 
he  gazed  upon  its  walls,  its  towers  and  its  palaces.  Once 
more  he  beheld  the  temple  in  its  dazzling  splendor/ a  dia- 
dem of  beauty  crowning  the  sacred  mount. 

A  thousand  years  before,  the  psHmist  had  magnified  God's 
favor  to  Israel  in  making  her  holy  house  his  dwelling-place: 
"In  Salem  also  is  his  tabernacle,  and  his  dwelling-place  in 
Zion."1  He  "chose  the  tribe  of  Judah,  the  Mount  Zion 
which  he  loved.  And  he  built  his  sanctuary  like  high  pal- 
aces."2 The  first  temple  had  been  erected  during  the  most 
prosperous  period  of  Israel's  history.  Vast  stores  of  treasure 
for  this  purpose  had  been  collected  by  King  David,  and  the 
plans  for  its  construction  were  made  by  divine  inspiration.3 
Solomon,  the  wisest  of  Israel's  monarchs,  had  completed  the 
work.  This  temple  was  the  most  magnificent  building  which 
the  world  ever  saw.  Yet  the  Lord  had  declared  by  the 
prophet  Haggai,  concerning  the  second  temple,  "  The  glory 
of  this  latter  house  shall  be  greater  than  of  the  former."  "I 
will  shake  all  hations,  and  the  Desire  of  all  nations  shall 
come;  and  I  will  fill  this  house  with  glory,  saith  the  Lord 
of  hosts."4 

After  the  destruction  of  the  temple  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  it 

1  Ps.  76  :  2.  *  Ps.  78  : 68,  69.  3  1  Chron.  28  : 12,  19. 

*  Hag.  2  :  9,  7. 


24  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


was  rebuilt  about  five  hundred  years  before  the  birth  of 
Christ,  by  a  people  who  from  a  life-long  captivity  had  re- 
turned to  a  wasted  and  almost  deserted  country.  There 
were  then  among  them  aged  men  who  had  seen  the  glory 
of  Solomon's  temple,  and  who  wept  at  the  foundation  of  the 
new  building,  that  it  must  be  so  inferior  to  the  former.  The 
feeling  that  prevailed  is  forcibly  described  by  the  prophet: 
"Who  is  left  among  you  that  saw  this  house  in  her  first 
glory?  and  how  do  ye  see  it  now?  is  it  not  in  your  eyes 
in  comparison  of  it  as  nothing?"1  Then  was  given  the 
promise  that  the  glory  of  this  latter  house  should  be  greater 
than  that  of  the  former. 

But  the  second  temple  had  not  equaled  the  first  in  mag- 
nificence; nor  was  it  hallowed  by  those  visible  tokens  of  the 
divine  presence  which  pertained  to  the  first  temple.  There 
was  no  manifestation  of  supernatural  power  to  mark  its 
dedication.  No  cloud  of  glory  was  seen  to  fill  the  newly 
erected  sanctuary.  No  fire  from  Heaven  descended  to  con- 
sume the  sacrifice  upon  its  altar.  The  shekinah  no  longer 
abode  between  the  cherubim  in  the  most  holy  place;  the 
ark,  the  mercy-seat,  and  the  tables  of  the  testimony  were 
not  to  be  found  therein.  No  voice  sounded  from  Heaven  to 
make  known  to  the  inquiring  priest  the  will  of  Jehovah. 

For  centuries  the  Jews  had  vainly  endeavored  to  show 
wherein  the  promise  of  God  given  by  llaggai,  had  beei 
fulfilled;  yet  pride  and  unbelief  blinded  their  minds  to  the 
true  meaning  of  the  prophet's  words.  The  second  ton  pic 
was  not  honored  with  the  cloud  of  Jehovah's  glory,  but  with 
the  living  presence  of  One  in  whom  dwelt  the  1'nllncss  of 
the  Godhead  bodily, — who  was  (i<>d  himself  manifest  in  the 
flesh.  The  "Desire  of  all  nations"  had  indeed  come  to  his 
temple  when  the  Man  of  Na/areth  taught  and  healed  in  the 
sacre<l  courts.  In  the  presence  of  Christ,  and  in  this  only, 
did  the  second  temple  exceed  the  first  in  glory.  But  Israel 
had  put  from  her  the  proil'eivd  gift  of  Heaven.  \Viththe 

1Hag.  2:3. 


THE  first  temple,  erected  by  Solomon,  was  com- 
pleted B.  c.  1004.    In  B.  c.  588,  soon  after  the  be^ 
rginning  of  the  seventy  years'  captivity  in  Baby. 
Ion,  it  was  destroyed  by  the  army  of  Nebuchad- 
nezzar.    After  the  return  of  the  Jews  to  their 
1  own  land,  the  temple  was  rebuilt,  on  a  somewhat 
larger  scale,  by  Zerubbabel,  B.  c.  516.    Five  hun- 
'dred  years  later  it  was  restored  and  enlarged  by 
Herod,  who  began  the  work  about  20  B.  c.   Herod 
/retained,  in  the  sanctuary,  the  same  dimensions 
[  as  in  that  of  Zerubbabel,  but  he  added  greatly  to 
the  size  and  magnificence  of  the  courts.     The 
'  temple  inclosure  was  so  extended  as  to  form  an 
;  area  of  nearly  a  thousand  feet  square.    The  clois- 
ters surrounding  the  outer  court  are  said  to  have 
been,  in  an  architectural  point  of  view,  the  most 
magnificent  part  of  the  entire  structure.    A  series 
of  terraced  courts  ascended  to  the  holy  house  it- 
self, which  faced  eastward,  and  was  approached 
from  the  east,  though  the  principal  gateways  in 
the  outer  inclosure  were  on  the  west.    This  tem- 
ple was  destroyed  A.  D.  70. 


THE  TEMPLE  AND  ITS  COURTS. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

Of 
^Rt4\| 


DESTR  UCTION  OF  JER USA  L KM.  25 


humble  Teacher  who  had  that  day  passed  out  from  its 
golden  gate,  the  glory  had  forever  departed  from  the  temple. 
Already  were  the  Saviour's  words  fulfilled,  "  Your  house  is 
left  unto  you  desolate."1 

The  disciples  had  been  filled  with  awe  and  wonderv  at 
Christ's  prediction  of  the  overthrow  of  the  temple,  and  they 
desired  to  understand  more  fully  the  meaning  of  his  words. 
Wealth,  labor,  and  architectural  skill  had  for  more  than 
forty  years  been  freely  expendedvto  enhance  its  splendors. 
Herod  the  Great  had  lavished  upon  it  both  Roman  wealth 
and  Jewish  treasure,  and  even  the  emperor  of  the  world  had 
enriched  it  with  his  gifts.  Massive  blocks  of  white  marble, 
of  almost  fabulous  size,  forwarded  from  Rome  for  this  pur- 
pose, formed  a  part  of  its  structure;  and  to  these  the  dis- 
ciples had  called  the  attention  of  their  Master,  saying,  "See 
what  manner  of  stones  and  what  buildings  are  here! " 2 

To  these  words,  Jesus  made  the  solemn  and  startling 
reply,  "  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  There  shall  not  be  left  here 
one  stone  upon  another,  that  shall  not  be  thrown  down."3 

With  the  overthrow  of  Jerusalem  the  disciples  associated 
the  events  of  Christ's  personal  coming  in  temporal  glory  to 
take  the  throne  of  universal  empire,  to  punish  the  impeni- 
tent Jews,  and  to  break  from  off  the  nation  the  Roman  yoke. 
The  Lord  had  told  them  that  he  would  come  the  second 
time.  Hence  at  the  mention  of  judgments  upon  Jerusalem, 
their  minds  reverted  to  that  coming,  and  as  they  were  gath- 
ered about  the  Saviour  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  they 
asked,  "  When  shall  these  things  be?  and  what  shall  be  the 
sign  of  thy  coming,  and  of  the  end  of  the  world?" 

The  future  was  mercifully  veiled  from  the  disciples.  Had 
they  at  that  time  fully  comprehended  the  two  awful  facts, — 
the  Redeemer's  sufferings  and  death  and  the  destruction  of 
their  city  and  temple, — they  would  have  been  overwhelmed 
with  horror.  Christ  presented  before  them  an  outline  of  the 

1  Matt.  23  :  33.  *  Mark  13:1.  3  Matt.  24  :  2. 

4  Matt.  24:3. 


26  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

prominent  events  to  take  place  before  the  close  of  time.  His 
words  were  not  then  fully  understood;  but  their  meaning- 
was  to  be  unfolded  as  his  people  should  need  the  instruction 
therein  given.  The  prophecy  which  he  uttered  was  twofold 
in  its  meaning:  while  foreshadowing  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,  it  prefigured  also  the  terrors  of  the  last  great  day. 

Jesus  declared  to  the  listening  disciples  the  judgments  that 
were  to  fall  upon  apostate  Israel,  and  especially  the  retrib- 
utive vengeance  that  would  come  upon  them  for  their  re- 
jection and  crucifixion  of  the  Messiah.  Unmistakable  signs 
would  precede  the  awful  climax.  The  dreaded  hour  would 
come  suddenly  and  swiftly.  And  the  Saviour  warned  his 
followers:  "  When  ye  therefore  shall  see  the  abomination  of 
desolation,  spoken  of  by  Daniel  the  prophet,  stand  in  the 
holy  place  (whoso  readeth  let  him  understand),  then  let 
them  which  be  in  Judea  flee  into  the  mountains."1  When 
the  idolatrous  standards  of  the  Romans  should  bo  set  up  in 
the  holy  ground,  which  extended  some  furlongs  outside  the 
city  walls,  then  the  followers  of  Christ  were  to  find  safety  in 
flight.  When  the  warning  sign  should  be  seen,  those  who 
would  escape  must  make  no  delay.  Throughout  the  land 
of  Judea,  as  well  as  in  Jerusalem  itself,  the  signal  for  flight 
must  be  immediately  obeyed.  He  who  chanced  to  be  upon 
the  housetop  must  not  go  down  into  his  house,  even  to  save 
his  most  valued  treasures.  Those  who  were  working  in  the 
fields  or  vineyards  must  not  take  time  to  return  for  the 
outer  garment  laid  aside  while  they  should  be  toiling  in  the 
heat  of  the  day.  They  must  not  hesitate  a  moment,  lest 
they  be  involved  in  the  general  destruction. 

In  the  reign  of  Herod,  Jerusalem  had  not  only  been 
greatly  beautified,  but  by  the  erection  of  towers,  walls,  and 
fortresses,  adding  to  the  natural  strength  of  its  situation,  it 
had  been  rendered  apparently  im pregnable.  -  He  who  would 
at  this  time  have  foretold  publicly  its  destruction,  would, 
like  Noah  in  his  day,  have  been  called  a  cra/e<l  alarmist. 
1  Matt.  124:  1fs  !«;  Luke  21:  20. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  27 

But  Christ  had  said,  "  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away, 
but  my  words  shall  not  pass  away."  l  Because  of  her  sins, 
wrath  had  been  denounced  against  Jerusalem,  and  her  stub- 
born unbelief  rendered  her  doom  certain. 

The  Lord  had  declared  by  the  prophet  Micah :  "  Hear  this, 
I  pray  you,  ye  heads  of  the  house  of  Jacob,  and  princes  oi' 
the  house  of  Israel,  that  abhor  judgment,  and  pervert  all 
equity.  They  build  up  Zion  with  blood,  and  Jerusalem  with 
iniquity.  The  heads  thereof  judge  for  reward,  and  the 
priests  thereof  teach  for  hire,  and  the  prophets  thereof  divine 
for  money;  yet  will  they  lean  upon  the  Lord,  and  say,  Is 
not  the  Lord  among  us?  none  evil  can  come  upon  us."2 

These  words  faithfully  described  the  corrupt  and  self- 
righteous  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem.  While  claiming  to  rig- 
idly observe  the  precepts  of  God's  law,  they  were  transgress- 
ing all  its  principles.  They  hated  Christ  because  his  purity 
and  holiness  revealed  their  iniquity;  and  they  accused  him 
of  being  the  cause  of  all  the  troubles  which  had  come  upon 
them  in  consequence  of  their  sins.  Though  they  knew  him 
to  be  sinless,  they  had  declared  that  his  death  was  necessary 
to  their  safety  as  a  nation.  "  If  we  let  him  thus  alone,"  said 
the  Jewish  leaders,  "  all  men  will  believe  on  him ;  and  the 
Romans  shall  come  and  take  away  both  our  place  and 
nation."3  If  Christ  were  sacrificed,  they  might  once  more 
become  a  strong,  united  people.  Thus  they  reasoned,  and 
they  concurred  in  the  decision  of  their  high  priest,  that  it 
would  be  better  for  one  man  to  die  than  for  the  whole  nation 
to  perish. 

Thus  the  Jewish  leaders  had  "  built  up  Zion  with  blood, 
and  Jerusalem  with  iniquity."  And  yet,  while  they  slew 
their  Saviour  because  he  reproved  their  sins,  such  was  their 
self-righteousness  that  they  regarded  themselves  as  God's 
favored  people,  and  expected  the  Lord  to  deliver  them  from 
their  enemies.  "Therefore,"  continued  the  prophet,  "shall 
Zion  for  your  sake  be  plowed  as  a  field,  and  Jerusalem  shall 

1  Matt.  24  :  35.  2  Micah  3  :  9-11.  3  John  11  : 48. 


28  THE    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

become  heaps,  and  the  mountain  of  the  house  as  the  high 
places  of  the  forest."1 

For  forty  years  after  the  doom  of  Jerusalem  had  boon  pro- 
nounced by  Christ  himself,  the  Lord  delayed  his  judgments 
upon  the  city  and  the  nation.  Wonderful  was  the  long- 
suffering  of  God  toward  the  rejecters  of  his  gospel  and  the 
murderers  of  his  Son.  The  parable  of  the  unfruitful  tree 
represented  God's  dealings  with  the  Jewish  nation.  The 
command  had  gone  forth,  "Cut  it  down;  why  cumbereth  it 
the  ground?"2  but  divine  mercy  had  spared  it  yet  a  little 
longer.  There- were  still  many  among  the  Jews  who  were 
ignorant  of  the  character  and  the  work  of  Christ.  And  the 
children  had  not  enjoyed  the  opportunities  or  received  the 
light  which  their  parents  had  spurned.  Through  the  preach- 
ing of  the  apostles  and  their  associates,  God  would  cause 
light  to  shine  upon  them;  they  would  be  permitted  to  see 
how  prophecy  had  been  fulfilled,  not  only  in  the  birth  and 
life  of  Christ,  but  in  his  death  and  resurrection.  The  chil- 
dren were  not  condemned  for  the  sins  of  the  parents;  but 
when,  with  a  knowledge  of  all  the  light  given  to  their  par- 
ents, the  children  rejected  the  additional  light  granted  to 
themselves,  they  became  partakers  of  the  parents'  sins,  and 
filled  up  the  measure  of  their  iniquity. 

The  long-suffering  of  God  toward  Jerusalem  only  con- 
firmed the  Jews  in  their  stubborn  impenitence.  In  their 
hatred  and  cruelty  toward  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  they  re- 
jected the  last  offer  of  mercy.  Then  God  withdrew  his  pro- 
tection from  them,  and  removed  his  restraining  power  from 
Satan  and  his  angels,  and  the  nation  was  left  to  the  control 
of  the  leader  she  had  chosen.  Her  children  bad  spurned 
the  grace  of  Christ,  winch  would  have  enabled  them  to  sub- 
due their  evil  impulses,  and  now  these  became  the  con- 
querors. Satan  aroused  the  fiercest  and  most  debased  pas- 
sions of  the  soul.  Men  did  not  reason;  they  were  beyond 
reason, — controlled  by  impulse  and  blind  rage.  They  be- 

1Micah3:12.  Luke  13:  7. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  29 

came  Satanic  in  their  cruelty.  In  the  family  and  in  the 
nation,  among  the  highest  and  the  lowest  classes  alike,  there 
was  suspicion,  envy,  hatred,  strife,  rebellion,  murder.  There 
was  110  safety  anywhere.  Friends  and  kindred  betrayed  one 
another.  Parents  slew  their  children  and  children  their 
parents.  The  rulers  of  the  people  had  no  power  to  rule 
themselves.  Uncontrolled  passions  made  them  tyrants. 
The  Jews  had  accepted  false  testimony  to  condemn  the  inno- 
cent Son  of  God.  Now  false  accusations  made  their  own 
lives  uncertain.  By  their  actions  they  had  long  been  say- 
ing, "Cause  the  Holy  One  of  Israel  to  cease  from  before  us."1 
Now  their  desire  was  granted.  The  fear  of  God  no  longer 
disturbed  them.  Satan  was  at  the  head  of  the  nation,  and 
the  highest  civil  and  religious  authorities  were  under  his 
sway. 

The  leaders  of  the  opposing  factions  at  times  united  to 
plunder  and  torture  their  wretched  victims,  and  again  they 
fell  upon  each  other's  forces,  and  slaughtered  without  mercy. 
Even  the  sanctity  of  the  temple  could  not  restrain  their  hor- 
rible ferocity.  The  worshipers  were  stricken  down  before 
the  altar,  and  the  sanctuary  was  polluted  with  the  bodies  of 
the  slain.  Yet  in  their  blind  and  blasphemous  presumption 
the  instigators  of  this  hellish  work  publicly  declared  that 
they  had  no  fear  that  Jerusalem  would  be  destroyed,  for  it 
was  God's  own  city.  To  establish  their  power  more  firmly, 
they  bribed  false  prophets  to  proclaim,  even  while  Roman 
legions  were  besieging  the  temple,  that  the  people  were  to 
wait  for  deliverance  from  God.  To  the  last,  multitudes  held 
fast  to  the  belief  that  the  Most  High  would  interpose  for  the 
defeat  of  their  adversaries.  But  Israel  had  spurned  the 
divine  protection,  and  now  she  had  no  defense.  Unhappy 
Jerusalem!  rent  by  internal  dissensions,  the  blood  of  her 
children  slain  by  one  another's  hands  crimsoning  her  streets, 
while  alien  armies  beat  down  her  fortifications  and  slew  her 
men  of  war! 

'Isa.  30:11. 


30  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

All  the  predictions  given  by  Christ  concerning  the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem  were  fulfilled  to  the  letter.  The  Jews 
experienced  the  truth  of  his  words  of  warning,  "  With  what 
measure  ye  mete,  it  shall  be  measured  to  you  again." ' 

Signs  and  wonders  appeared,  foreboding  disaster  and  doom. 
In  the  midst  of  the  night  an  unnatural  light  shone  over  the 
temple  ana  the  altar.  Upon  the  clouds  at  sunset  were  pict- 
ured chariots  and  men  of  war  gathering  for  battle.  The 
priests  ministering  by  night  in  the  sanctuary  were  terrified 
by  mysterious  sounds ;  the  earth  trembled,  and  a  multitude 
of  voices  were  heard  crying,  "Let  us  depart  hence."  The 
great  eastern  gate,  which  was  so  heavy  that  it  could  hardly 
be  shut  by  a  score  of  men,  and  which  was  secured  by  im- 
mense bars  of  iron  fastened  deep  in  the  pavement  of  solid 
stone,  opened  at  midnight,  without  visible  agency. 

For  seven  years  a  man  continued  to  go  up  and  down  the 
streets  of  Jerusalem,  declaring  the  woes  that  were  to  come 
upon  the  city.  By  day  and  by  night  he  chanted  the  wild 
dirge,  "A  voice  from  the  east;  a  voice  from  the  west;  a  voice 
from  the  four  winds;  a  voice  against  Jerusalem  and  the 
temple;  a  voice  against  the  bridegroom  and  the  bride;  and 
a  voice  against  all  the  people."  This  strange  being  was 
imprisoned  and  scourged;  but  no  complaint  escaped  his  lips. 
To  insult  and  abuse  he  answered  only,  "  Woe  to  Jerusalem ! 
woe,  woe  to  the  inhabitants  thereof! "  His  warning  cry 
ceased  not  until  he  was  slain  in  the  siege  he  had  foretold. 

Not  one  Christian  perished  in  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 
Christ  had  given  his  disciples  warning,  and  all  who  believed 
his  words  watched  for  the  promised  sign.  "  When  ye  shall 
see  Jerusalem  compassed  with  armies,"  said  Jesus,  "then 
know  that  the  desolation  thereof  is  nigh.  Then  let  (hem 
which  are  in  Judea  flee  to  the  mountains;  and  let  them 
which  are  in  the  midst  of  it  depart  out." 2  After  the  Romans 
under  Cestius  had  surrounded  the  city,  they  unexpectedly 
abandoned  the  siege  when  everything  seemed  favorable  for 

1  Matt.  7:2.  *  Luke  21  :20,  21. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  31 

an  immediate  attack.  The  besieged,  despairing  of  successful 
resistance,  were  on  the  point  of  surrender,  when  the  Roman 
general  withdrew  his  forces,  without  the  least  apparent 
reason.  But  God's  merciful  providence  was  directing  events 
for  the  good  of  his  own  people.  The  promised  sign  had 
been  given  to  the  waiting  Christians,  and  now  an  oppor- 
tunity was  afforded  for  all  who  would  to  obey  the  Saviour's 
warning.  Events  were  so  overruled  that  neither  Jews  nor 
Romans  should  hinder  the  flight  of  the  Christians.  Upon 
the  retreat  of  Cestius,  the  Jews,  sallying  from  Jerusalem, 
pursued  after  his  retiring  army,  and  while  both  forces  were 
thus  fully  engaged,  the  Christians  had  an  opportunity  to 
leave  the  city.  At  this  time  the  country  also  had  been 
cleared  of  enemies  who  might  have  endeavored  to  intercept 
them.  At  the  time  of  the  siege,  the  Jews  were  assembled  at 
Jerusalem  to  keep  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles,  and  thus  the 
Christians  throughout  the  land  were  able  to  make  their 
escape  unmolested.  Without  delay  they  fled  to  a  place  of 
safety, — the  city  of  Pella,  in  the  land  of  Perea,  beyond 
Jordan. 

The  Jewish  forces,  pursuing  after  Cestius  and  his  army, 
fell  upon  their  rear  with  such  fierceness  as  to  threaten  them 
with  total  destruction.  It  was  with  great  difficulty  that  the 
Romans  succeeded  in  making  their  retreat.  The  Jews  es- 
caped almost  without  loss,  and  with  their  spoils  returned  in 
triumph  to  Jerusalem.  Yet  this  apparent  success  brought 
them  only  evil.  It  inspired  them  with  that  spirit  of  stub- 
born resistance  to  the  Romans  which  speedily  brought  un- 
utterable woe  upon  the  doomed  city. 

Terrible  were  the  calamities  that  fell  upon  Jerusalem  when 
the  siege  was  resumed  by  Titus.  The  city  was  invested  at 
the  time  of  the  Passover,  when  millions  of  Jews  were  as- 
sembled within  its  walls.  Their  stores  of  provision,  which 
if  carefully  preserved  would  have  supplied  the  inhabitants 
for  years,  had  previously  been  destroyed  through  the  jealousy 
and  revenge  of  the  contending  factions,  and  now  all  the  hor- 


32  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


rors  of  starvation  were  experienced.  A  measure  of  wheat 
was  sold  for  a  talent.  So  fierce  were  the  pangs  of  hunger 
that  men  would  gnaw  the  leather  of  their  belts  and  sandals 
and  the  covering  of  their  shields.  Great  numbers  of  the 
people  would  steal  out  at  night  to  gather  wild  plants  grow- 
ing outside  the  city  walls,  though  many  were  seized  and 
put  to  death  with  cruel  torture,  and  often  those  who  returned 
in  safety  were  robbed  of  what  they  had  gleaned  at  so  great 
peril.  The  most  inhuman  tortures  were  inflicted  by  those 
in  power,  to  force  from  the  want-stricken  people  the  last 
scanty  supplies  which  they  might  have  concealed.  And 
these  cruelties  were  not  infrequently  practiced  by  men  who 
were  themselves  well  fed,  and  wrho  w^ere  merely  desirous  of 
laying  up  a  store  of  provision  for  the  future. 

Thousands  perished  from  famine  and  pestilence.  Natural 
affection  seemed  to  have  been  destroyed.  Husbands  robbed 
their  wives,  and  wives  their  husbands.  Children  would  be 
seen  snatching  the  food  from  the  mouths  of  their  aged  par- 
ents. The  question  of  the  prophet,  "Can  a  woman  forget 
her  sucking  child?"1  received  the  answer  within  the  walls 
of  that  doomed  city,  "  The  hands  of  the  pitiful  wromen  have 
sodden  their  own  children;  they  were  their  meat  in  the 
destruction  of  the  daughter  of  my  people." ?  Again  was 
fulfilled  the  warning  prophecy  given  fourteen  centuries  be- 
fore: "The  tender  and  delicate  woman  among  you,  which 
would  not  adventure  to  set  the  sole  of  her  foot  upon  the 
ground  for  delicateness  and  tenderness,  her  eye  shall  be  evil 
toward  the  husband  of  her  bosom,  and  toward  her  son,  and 
toward  her  daughter;  .  .  .  and  toward  her  children 
which  she  shall  bear;  for  she  shall  eat  them  for  want  of  all 
things  secretly  in  the  siege  and  straitness,  wherewith  thine 
enemy  shall  distress  thee  in  thy  gat« 

The  Roman  leaders  endeavored  to  strike  terror  to  the 
Jews,  and  thus  cause  them  to  surrender.  Those  prisoners 
who  resisted  when  taken,  were  scourged,  tortured,  and  cruci- 

1  Isa.  49  : 15.  2  Lam.  4:10.  »  Deut.  28  : 56,  57. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  33 

fied  before  the  wall  of  the  city.  Hundreds  were  daily  put 
to  death  in  this  manner,  and  the  dreadful  work  continued 
until,  along  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  and  at  Calvary, 
crosses  were  erected  in  so  great  numbers  that  there  was 
scarcely  room  to  move  among  them.  So  terribly  was  visited 
that  awful  imprecation  uttered  before  the  judgment-seat  of 
Pilate:  "His  blood  be  on  us,  and  on  our  children."1 

Titus  would  willingly  have  put  an  end  to  the  fearful 
scene,  and  thus  have  spared  Jerusalem  the  full  measure  of 
her  doom.  He  was  filled  with  horror  as  he  saw  the  bodies 
of  the  dead  lying  in  heaps  in  the  valleys.  Like  one  en- 
tranced, he  looked  from  the  crest  of  Olivet  upon  the  mag- 
nificent temple,  and  gave  command  that  not  one  stone  of  it 
be  touched.  Before  attempting  to  gain  possession  of  this 
stronghold,  he  made  an  earnest  appeal  to  the  Jewish  leaders 
not  to  force  him  to  defile  the  sacred  place  with  blood.  If 
they  would  come  forth  and  fight  in  any  other  place,  no  Ro- 
man should  violate  the  sanctity  of  the  temple.  Josephus 
himself,  in  a  most  eloquent  appeal,  entreated  them  to  sur- 
render, to  save  themselves,  their  city,  and  their  place  of 
worship.  But  his  words  were  answered  with  bitter  curses. 
Darts  were  hurled  at  him,  their  last  human  mediator,  as  he 
stood  pleading  with  them.  The  Jews  had  rejected  the  en- 
treaties of  the  Son  of  God,  and  now  expostulation  and  en- 
treaty only  made  them  more  determined  to  resist  to  the  last. 
In  vain  were  the  efforts  of  Titus  to  save  the  temple ;  One 
greater  than  he  had  declared  that  not  one  stone  was  to  be 
left  upon  another. 

The  blind  obstinacy  of  the  Jewish  leaders,  and  the  de- 
testable crimes  perpetrated  within  the  besieged  city,  excited 
the  horror  and -indignation  of  the  Romans,  and  Titus  at  last 
decided  to  take  the  temple  by  storm.  He  determined,  how- 
ever, that  if  possible  it  should  be  saved  from  destruction. 
But  his  commands  were  disregarded.  After  he  had  retired 
to  his  tent  at  night,  the  Jews,  sallying  from  the  temple,  at- 

»Matt.  27  :25. 


34  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


tacked  the  soldiers  without.  In.  the  struggle,  a,  firebrand 
was  flung  by  a  soldier  through  an  opening  in  the  porch,  and 
immediately  the  cedar-lined  chambers  about  the  holy  house 
were  in  a  blaze.  Titus  rushed  to  the  place,  followed  by  his 
generals  and  legionaries,  and  commanded  the  soldiers  to 
quench  the  flames.  His  words  were  unheeded.  In  their 
fury  the  soldiers  hurled  blazing  brands  into  the  chambers 
adjoining  the  temple,  and  then  with  their  swords  they 
slaughtered  in  great  numbers  those  who  had  found  shelter 
there.  Blood  flowed  down  the  temple  steps  like  water. 
Thousands  upon  thousands  of  Jews  perished.  Above  the 
sound  of  battle,  voices  were  heard  shouting,  "  Ichabod ! " — 
the  glory  is  departed. 

"Titus  found  it  impossible  to  check  the  rage  of  the  sol- 
diery; he  entered  with  his  officers,  and  surveyed  the  interior 
of  the  sacred  edifice.  The  splendor  filled  them  with  wonder- 
and  as  the  flames  had  not  yet  penetrated  to  the  holy  place, 
he  made  a  last  effort  to  .save  it,  and  springing  forth,  again 
exhorted  the  soldiers  to  stay  the  progress  of  the  conflagration. 
The  centurion  Liberalis  endeavored  to  enforce  obedience  with 
his  staff  of  office;  but  even  respect  for  the  emperor  gave  way 
to  the  furious  animosity  against  the  Jews,  to  the  fierce  ex- 
citement of  battle,  and  to  the  insatiable  hope  of  plunder. 
The  soldiers'saw  everything  around  them  radiant  with  gold, 
which  shone  dazzlingly  in  the  wild  light  of  the  flames ;  they 
supposed  that  incalculable  treasures  were  laid  up  in  the 
sanctuary.  A  soldier,  unperceived,  thrust  a  lighted  torch 
between  the  hinges  of  the  door;  the  whole  building  was  in 
flames  in  an  instant.  The  blinding  smoke  and  fire  forced 
the  officers  to  retreat,  and  the  noble  edifice  was  left  to  its 
fate. 

"It  was  an  appalling  spectacle  to  the  ftoinan;  what  was 
it  to  the  Jew?  The  whole  summit  of  the  hill  which  com- 
manded the  city  blazed  like  a  volcano.  One  after  another 
the  buildings  fell  in,  with  a  tremendous  crash,  and  were 
swallowed  up  in  the  fiery  abyss.  The  roofs  of  cedar  were 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  35 

like  sheets  of  flame,  the  gilded  pinnacles  shone  like  spikes 
of  red  light;  the  gate  towers  sent  up  tall  columns  of  flame 
and  smoke.  The  neighboring  hills  were  lighted  up;  and 
dark  groups  of  people  were  seen  watching  in  horrible  anxiety 
the  progress  of  the  destruction ;  the  walls  and  heights  of  the 
upper  city  were  crowded  with  faces,  some  pale  with  the 
agony  of  despair,  others  scowling  unavailing  vengeance. 
The  shouts  of  the  Roman  soldiery  as  they  ran  to  and  fro, 
and  the  howlings  of  the  insurgents  who  were  perishing  in 
the  flames,  mingled  with  the  roaring  of  the  conflagration 
and  the  thundering  sound  of  falling  timbers.  The  echoes 
of  the  mountains  replied  or  brought  back  the  shrieks  of  the 
people  on  the  heights;  all  along  the  walls  resounded  screams 
and  wailings;  men  who  were  expiring  with  famine  rallied 
their  remaining  strength  to  utter  a  cry  of  anguish  and  des- 
olation. 

"  The  slaughter  within  was  even  more  dreadful  than  the 
spectacle  from  without.  Men  and  women,  old  and  young, 
insurgents  and  priests,  those  who  fought  and  those  who  en- 
treated mercy,  were  hewn  down  in  indiscriminate  carnage. 
The  number  of  the  slain  exceeded  that  of  the  slayers.  The 
legionaries  had  to  clamber  over  heaps  of  dead  to  carry  on 
the  work  of  extermination." 

After  the  destruction  of  the  temple,  the  whole  city  soon 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Romans.  The  leaders  of  the  Jews 
forsook  their  impregnable  towers,  and  Titus  found  them  sol- 
itary. He  gazed  upon  them  with  amazement,  and  declared 
that  God  had  given  them  into  his  hands;  ior  no  engines, 
however  powerful,  could  have  prevailed  against  those  stu- 
pendous battlements.  Both  the  city  and  the  temple  were 
razed  to  their  foundations,  and  the  ground  upon  which  the 
holy  house  had  stood  was  "plowed  like  a  field."1  In  the 
siege  and  the  slaughter  that  followed,  more  than  a  million 
of  the  people  perished;  the  survivors  were  carried  away  as 
captives,  sold  as  slaves,  dragged  to  Rome  to  grace  the  con- 

1  Jer.  26 : 18. 


36  THE    GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

queror's  .triumph,  thrown  to  wild  beasts  in  the  amphithea- 
ters, or  scattered  as  homeless  wanderers  throughout  the  earth. 

The  Jews  had  forged  their  own  fetters;  they  had  filled  for 
themselves  the  cup  of  vengeance.  In  the  utter  destruction 
that  befell  them  as  a  nation,  and  in  all  the  woes  that  fol- 
lowed them  in  their  dispersion,  they  were  but  reaping  the 
harvest  which  their  own  hands  had  sown.  Says  the  prophet, 
"0  Israel,  thou  hast  destroyed  thyself;"  "for  thou  hast 
fallen  by  thine  iniquity."1  Their  sufferings  are  often  rep- 
resented as  a  punishment  visited  upon  them  by  the  direct 
decree  of  God.  It  is  thus  that  the  great  deceiver  seeks  to 
conceal  his  own  work.  By  stubborn  rejection  of  divine  love 
and  mercy,  the  Jews  had  caused  the  protection  ol  God  to  be 
withdrawn  from  them,  and  Satan  was  permitted  to  rule  them 
according  to  his  will.  The  horrible  cruelties  enacted  in  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem  are  a  demonstration  of  Satan's  vin- 
dictive power  over  those  who  yield  to  his  control. 

We  cannot  know  how  much  we  owe  to  Christ  for  the  peace 
and  protection  which  we  enjoy.  It  is  the  restraining  power 
of  God  that  prevents  mankind  from  passing  fully  under  the 
control  of  Satan.'  The  disobedient  and  unthankful  have 
great  reason  for  gratitude  for  God's  mercy  and  long-suffering 
in  holding  in  check  the  cruel,  malignant  power  of  the  evil 
one.  But  when  men  pass  the  limits  of  divine  forbearance, 
that  restraint  is  removed.  God  does  not  stand  toward  the 
sinner  as  an  executioner  of  the  sentence  against  transgres- 
sion; but  he  leaves  the  rejecters  of  his  mercy  to  themselves, 
to  reap  that  which  they  have  sown.  Every  ray  of  light 
rejected,  every  warning  despised  or  unheeded,  every  passion 
indulged,  every  transgression  of  the  law  of  God,  is  a  seed 
sown,  which  yields  its  unfailing  harvest.  The  Spirit  of  ( lod. 
persistently  resisted,  is  at  last  withdrawn  from  the  sinner. 
Mini  then  there  is  left  no  power  to  control  the  evil  passions 
of  the  soul,  and  no  protection  from  the  maliee  and  enmity 
of  Satan.  The  destruction  of  Jerusalem  is  a  fearful  and 

i  Hos.  13:9;  14:1. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  JERUSALEM.  37 

solemn  warning  to  all  who  are  trifling  with  the  offers  of 
divine  grace,  and  resisting  the  pleadings  of  divine  mercv. 
Never  was  there  given  a  more  decisive  testimony  to  God's 
hatred  of  sin,  and  to  the  certain  punishment  that  will  fall 
upon  the  guilty. 

The  Saviour's  prophecy  concerning  the  visitation  of  judg- 
ments upon  Jerusalem  is  to  have  another  fulfillment,  of 
which  that  terrible  desolation  was  but  a  faint  shadow.  In 
the  fate  of  the  chosen  city  we  may  behold  the  doom  of  a 
world  that  has  rejected  God's  mercy  and  trampled  upon  his 
law.  Dark  are  the  records  of  human  misery  that  earth  has 
witnessed  during  its  long  centuries  of  crime.  The  heart 
sickens  and  the  mind  grows  faint  in  contemplation.  Ter- 
rible have  been  the  results  of  rejecting  the  authority  of 
Heaven.  But  a  scene  yet  darker  is  presented  in  the  revela-  \ 


of  the  future.  The  records  of  the  past,  —  the  long  pro- 
cession of  tumults,  conflicts,  and  revolutions,  the  "  battle  of 
the  warrior,  with  confused  noise,  and  garments  rolled  in 
blood,"  1  —  what  are  these,  in  contrast  with  the  terrors  of  that 
day  when  the  restraining  Spirit  of  God  shall  be  wholly  with- 
drawn from  the  wicked,  no  longer  to  hold  in  check  the 
outburst  of  human  passion  and  Satanic  wrath  !  The  world 
will  then  behold,  as  never  before,  the  results  of  Satan's  rule. 
But  in  that  day,  as  in  the  time  of  Jerusalem's  destruction, 
God's  people  will  be  delivered,  "every  one  that  shall  be 
found  written  among  the  living."  Christ  has  declared  that 
he  will  come  the  second  time,  to  gather  his  faithful  ones  to 
himself:  "Then  shall  all  the  tribes  of  the  earth  mourn, 
and  they  shall  see  the  Son  of  man  coming  in  the  clouds  of 
heaven  with  power  and  great  glory.  And  he  shall  send  his 
angels  with  a  great  sound  of  a  trumpet,  and  they  shal] 
gather  together  his  elect  from  the  four  winds,  from  one  en-^ 
of  heaven  to  the  other."2  Then  shall  they  that  obey  not 
the  "gospel  be  consumed  with  the  spirit  of  his  mouth,  and 
be  destroyed  with  the  brightness  of  his  coming.3  Like  Israel 

1  Isa.  9  :  5.  2  Matt.  24  :  30,  31.  3  2  Thess.  2  :  8. 


38  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  old,  the  wicked  destroy  themselves;  they  fall  by  their 
iniquity.  By  a  life  of  sin,  they  have  placed  themselves  so 
out  of  harmony  with  God,  their  natures  have  become  so 
debased  with  evil,  that  the  manifestation  of  his  glory  is  to 
them  a  consuming  fire. 

Let  men  beware  lest  they  neglect  the  lesson  conveyed  to 
them  in  the  words  of  Christ.  As  he  warned  his  disciples  of 
Jerusalem's  destruction,  giving  them  a  sign  of  the  approach- 
ing ruin,  that  they  might  make  their  escape,  so  he  has 
warned  the  world  of  the  day  of  final  destruction,  and  has 
given  them  tokens  of  its  approach,  that  all  who  will  may 
flee  from  the  wrath  to  come.  Jesus  declares,  "  There  shall 
be  signs  in  the  sun,  and  in  the  moon,  and  in  the  stars;  and 
upon  the  earth  distress  of  nations."1  Those  who  behold 
these  harbingers  of  his  coming  are  to  "  know  that  it  is  near, 
even  at  the  doors." 2  "Watch  ye  therefore,"3  are  his  words 
of  admonition.  They  that  heed  the  warning  shall  not  be 
left  in  darkness,  that  that  day  should  overtake  them  un- 
awares. But  to  them  that  will  not  watch,  "  the  day  of  the 
Lord  so  cometh  as  a  thief  in  the  night." 4 

The  world  is  no  more  ready  to  credit  the  message  for  this 
time  than  were  the  Jews  to  receive  the  Saviour's  warning 
concerning  Jerusalem.  Come  when  it  may,  the  day  of  God 
will  come  unawares  to  the  ungodly.  When  life  is  going  on 
in  its  unvarying  round;  when  men  are  absorbed  in  pleasure, 
in  business,  in  traffic,  in  money-making;  when  religious 
lenders  arc  magnifying  the  world's  progress  and  enlighten- 
ment, and  the  people  arc  lulled  in  a  false  security, — then,  as 
the  midnight  thief  steals  within  the  unguarded  dwelling,  so 
shall  sudden  destruction  come  upon  the  careless  and  un- 
godly, "and  they  shall  not  escape."4 

»Luke  21  :  25  ;  Matt.  24  :  29;  Mark  13  :  24-2(5 ;  Rev.  (\ :  12-17. 
2  Matt.  24 : 33.  3  Mark  13 : 35.  4 1  Thess.  5 : 2-5. 


CHAPTER   II. 


PERSECUTION  IN  THE  FIRST  CENTURIES. 

WHEN.  Jesus  revealed  to  his  disciples  the  fate  of  Jerusalem 
and  the  scenes  of  the  second  advent,  he  foretold  also  the  ex- 
perience of  his  people  from  the  time  when  he  should  be 
taken  from  them,  to  his  return  in  power  and  glory  for  their 
deliverance.  From  Olivet  the  Saviour  beheld  the  storms 
about  to  fall  upon  the  apostolic  church,  and,  penetrating 
deeper  into  the  future,  his  eye  discerned  the  fierce,  wasting 
tempests  that  were  to  beat  upon  his  followers  in  the  coming 
ages  of  darkness  and  persecution.  In  a  few  brief  utterances, 
of  awful  significance,  he  foretold  the  portion  which  the  rul- 
ers of  this  world  would  mete  out  to  the  church  of  God.1 
The  followers  of  Christ  must  tread  the  same  path  of  humili- 
ation, reproach,  and  suffering  which  their  Master  trod.  The 
enmity  that  burst  forth  against  the  world's  Redeemer,  would 
be  manifested  against  all  who  should  believe  on  his  name. 

The  history  of  the  early  church  testified  to  the  fulfillment 
of  the  Saviour's  words.  The  powers,  of  earth  and  hell  ar- 
rayed themselves  against  Christ  in  the  person  of  his  follow- 
ers. Paganism  foresaw  that  should  the  gospel  triumph, 
her  temples  and  altars  would  be  swept  away;  therefore  she 
summoned  her  forces  to  destroy  Christianity.  The  fires  of 
persecution  were  kindled.  Christians  were  stripped  of  their 
possessions,  and  driven  from  their  homes.  They  "  endured 
a  great  fight  of  afflictions." 2  They  "  had  trial  of  cruel  mock 

1  Matt.  24:9,  21,  22.  *  Heb.  10  :  32. 

(39) 


40  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

ings  and  scourgings,  yea,  moreover  of  bonds  and  imprison- 
ment."1 Great  numbers  sealed  their  testimony  with  their 
blood.  Noble  and  slave,  rich  and  poor,  learned  and  igno- 
rant, were  alike  slain  without  mercy. 

These  persecutions,  beginning  under  Nero  about  the  time 
of  the  martyrdom  of  Paul,  continued  with  greater  or  less 
fury  for  centuries.  Christians  were  falsely  accused  of  the 
most  dreadful  crimes,  and  declared  to  be  the  cause  of  great 
calamities — famine,  pestilence,  and  earthquake.  As  they 
became  the  objects  of  popular  hatred  and  suspicion,  inform- 
ers stood  ready,  for  the  sake  of  gain,  to  betray  the  innocent. 
They  were  condemned  as  rebels  against  the  empire,  as  foes 
of  religion,  and  pests  to  society.  Great  numbers  were  thrown 
to  wild  beasts  or  burned  alive  in  the  amphitheaters.  Some 
were  crucified ;  others  were  covered  with  the  skins  of  wild 
animals,  and  thrust  into  the  arena  to  be  torn  by  dogs. 
Their  punishment  was  often  made  the  chief  entertainment 
at  public  fetes.  Vast  multitudes  assembled  to  enjoy  the 
sight,  and  greeted  their  dying  agonies  with  laughter  and 
applause. 

Wherever  they  sought  refuge,  the  followers  of  Christ  were 
hunted  like  beasts  of  prey.  They  were  forced  to  seek  con- 
cealment in  desolate  and  solitary  places.  "Destitute,  af- 
flicted, tormented;  of  whom  the  world  was  not  worthy;  they 
wandered  in  deserts,  and  in  mountains,  and  in  dens  and 
caves  of  the  earth."1  The  catacombs  afforded  shelter  for 
thousands.  Beneath  the  hills  outside  the  city  of  Rome,  long 
galleries  had  been  tunneled  through  eartli  and  rock;  the 
dark  and  intricate  network  of  passages  extended  for  miles 
beyond  the  city  walls.  In  these  underground  retreats,  the 
followers  of  Christ  buried  their  dead;  and  here  also;  when 
suspected  and  proscribed,  they  found  a  home.  When  the 
Lifegiver  shall  awaken  those  who  have  fought  the  good  fight, 
many  a  martyr  for  Christ's  sake  will  come  forth  from  those 
gloomy  caverns. 

11:36,37,38. 


PERSECUTION  IN  THE  FIRST  CENTURIES.       41 

Under  the  fiercest  persecution,  these  witnesses  for  Jesift 
kept  their  faith  unsullied.  Though  deprived  of  every  com- 
fort, shut  away  from  the  light  of  the  sun,  making  their 
home  in  the  dark  but  friendly  bosom  of  the  earth,  they 
uttered  no  complaint.  With  words  of  faith,  patience,  and 
hope,  they  encouraged  one  another  to  endure  privation  and 
distress.  The  loss  of  every  earthly  blessing  could  not  force 
them  to  renounce  their  belief  in  Christ.  Trials  and  persecu- 
tion wrere  but  steps  bringing  them  nearer  their  rest  and 
their  reward. 

Like  God's  servants  of  old,  many  were  "  tortured,  not  ac- 
cepting deliverance,  that  they  might  obtain  a  better  resur- 
rection." *  These  called  to  mind  the  wrords  of  their  Master, 
that  when  persecuted  for  Christ's  sake  they  were  to  be  ex- 
ceeding glad;  for  great  would  be  their  reward  in  Heaven; 
for  so  the  prophets  had  been  persecuted  before  them.  They 
rejoiced  that  they  were  accounted  worthy  to  suffer  for  the 
truth,  and  songs  of  triumph  ascended  from  the  midst  of 
crackling  flames.  Looking  upward  by  faith,,  they  saw  Christ 
and  angels  leaning  over  the  battlements  of  Heaven,  gazing 
upon  them  with  the  deepest  interest,  and  regarding  their 
steadfastness  with  approval.  A  voice  came  down  to  them 
from  the  throne  of  God,  "  Be.  thou  faithful  unto  death,  and 
I  will  give  thee  a  crown  of  life." 2 

In  vain  were  Satan's  efforts  to  destroy  the  church  of  Christ 
by  violence.  The  great  controversy  in  which  the  disciples 
of  Jesus  yielded  up  their  lives,  did  not  cease  when  these 
faithful  standard-bearers  fell  at  their  post.  By  defeat  they 
conquered.  God's  workmen  were  slain,  but  his  work  went 
steadily  forward.  -  The  gospel  continued  to  spread,  and  the 
number  of  its  adherents  to  increase.  It  penetrated  into 
regions  that  were  inaccessible,  even  to  the  eagles  of  Rome- 
Said  a  Christian,  expostulating  with  the  heathen  rulers  who 
were  urging  forward  the  persecution :  "  You  may  torment 
afflict,  and  vex  us.  Your  wickedness  puts  our  weakness  to 
'Heb.  11:35.  'Rev.  2: 10. 


42  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

thfc  test,  but  your  cruelty  is  of  no  avail.  It  is  but  a  stronger 
invitation  to  bring  others  to  our  persuasion.  The  more  we 
are  mowed  down,  the  more  we  spring  up  again.  The  blood 
of  the  Christians  is  seed." 

Thousands  were  imprisoned  and  slain ;  but  others  sprung 
up  to  fill  their  places.  And  those  who  were  martyred  for 
their  faith  were  secured  to  Christ,  and  accounted  of  him  as 
conquerors.  They  had  fought  the  good  fight,  and  they  were 
to  receive  the  crown  of  glory  when  Christ  should  come. 
The  sufferings  which  they  endured  brought  Christians  nearer 
to  one  another  and  to  their  Redeemer.  Their  living  ex- 
ample and  dying  testimony  were  a  constant  witness  for  the 
truth ;  and,  where  least  expected,  the  subjects  of  Satan  were 
leaving  his  service,  and  enlisting  under  the  banner  of  Christ. 

Satan  therefore  laid  his  plans  to  war  more  successfully 
against  the  government  of  God,  by  planting  his  banner  in 
the  Christian  church.  If  the  followers  of  Christ  could  be 
deceived,  and  led  to  displease  God,  then  their  strength,  forti- 
tude, and  firmness  would  fail,  and  they  would  fall  an  easy 
prey. 

The  great  adversary  now  endeavored  to  gain  by  artifice 
what  he  had  failed  to  secure  by  force.  Persecution  ceased, 
and  in  its  stead  were  substituted  the  dangerous  allurements 
of  temporal  prosperity  and  worldly  honor.  Idolaters  were 
led  to  receive  a  part  of  the  Christian  faith,  while  they  re- 
jected other  essential  truths.  They  professed  to  accept  Jesus 
as  the  Son  of  God,  and  to  believe  in  his  death  and  resurrec- 
tion; but  they  had  no  conviction  of  sin,  and  felt  no  need 
of  repentance  or  of  a  change  of  heart.  With  some  conces- 
sions on  their  part,  they  proposed  that  Christians  should 
make  concessions,  that  all  might  unite  on  the  platform  of 
belief  in  Christ. 

Now  the  church  was  in  fearful  peril.  Prison,  torture,  fire, 
and  sword  were  blessings  in  comparison  with  this.  Some  of 
the  Christians  stood  firm,  declaring  that  they  could  make  no 
compromise.  Others  were  in  favor  of  yielding  or  modifying 


PERSECUTION  IN   THE  FIRST  CENTURIES.     43 

some  features  of  their  faith,  and  uniting  with  those  who  had 
accepted  a  part  of  Christianity,  urging  that  this  might  be 
the  means  of  their  full  conversion.  That  was  a  time  of  deep 
anguish  to  the  faithful  followers  of  Christ.  Under  a  cloak 
of  pretended  Christianity,  Satan  was  insinuating  himself 
into  the  church,  to  corrupt  their  faith,  and  turn  their  minds 
from  the  Word  of  truth. 

Most  of  the  Christians  at  last  consented  to  lower  their 
standard,  and  a  union  was  formed  between  Christianity  and 
paganism.  Although  the  worshipers  of  idols  professed  to  be 
converted,  and  united  with  the  church,  they  still  clung  to 
their  idolatry,  only  changing  the  objects  of  their  worship  to 
images  of  Jesus,  and  even  of  Mary  and  the  saints.  The  foul 
leaven  of  idolatry,  thus  brought  into  the  church,  continued 
its  baleful  w^ork.  Unsound  doctrines,  superstitious  rites,  and 
idolatrous  ceremonies  were  incorporated  into  her  faith  and 
worship.  As  the  followers  of  Christ  united  with  idolaters, 
the  Christian  religion  became  corrupted,  and  the  church  lost 
her  purity  and  power.  There  were  some,  however,  who 
were  not  misled  by  these  delusions.  They  still  maintained 
their  fidelity  to  the  Author  of  truth,  and  worshiped  God 
alone. 

There  have  ever  been  two  classes  among  those  who  pro- 
fess to  be  followers  of  Christ.  While  one  class  study  the 
Saviour's  life,  and  earnestly  .seek  to  correct  their  Defects  and 
to  conform  to  the  Pattern,  the  other  class  shun  the  plain, 
practical  truths  which  expose  their  errors.  Even  in  her  best 
estate,  the  church  was  not  composed  wholly  of  the  true,  pure, 
and  sincere.  Our  Saviour  taught  that  those  who  willfully 
indulge  in  sin  are  not  to  be  received  into  the  church ;  yet  he 
connected  with  himself  men  who  were  faulty  in  character, 
and  granted  them  the  benefits  of  his  teachings  and  example, 
that  they  might  have  an  opportunity  to  see  their  errors  and 
correct  them.  Among  the  twelve  apostles  was  a  traitor. 
Judas  was  accepted  not  because  of  his  defects  of  character, 
but  notwithstanding  them.  He  was  connected  with  the  dis- 


44  THE   GRJ1AT  CONTROVERSY. 


ciples,  that,  through  the  instruction  and  example  of  Christ, 
he  might  learn  what  constitutes  Christian  character,  and 
thus  be  led  to  see  his  errors,  to  repent,  and,  by  the  aid  of  di- 
vine grace,  to  purify  his  soul  "  in  obeying  the  truth."  But 
Judas  did  not  walk  in  the  light  so  graciously  permitted  to 
shine  upon  him.  By  indulgence  in  sin,  he  invited  the  temp- 
tations of  Satan.  His  evil  traits  of  character  became  pre- 
dominant. He  yielded  his  mind  to  the  control  of  the  powers 
of  darkness,  he  became  angry  when  his  faults  were  reproved 
and  thus  he  was  led  to  commit  the  fearful  crime  of  betraying 
his  Master.  So  do  all  who  cherish  evil  under  a  profession 
of  godliness  hate  those  who  disturb  their  peace  by  condemn- 
ing their  course  of  sin.  When  a  favorable  opportunity  is 
presented,  they  will,  like  Judas,  betray  those  who  for  their 
good  have  sought  to  reprove  them. 

The  apostles  encountered  those  in  the  church  who  pro- 
fessed godliness  while  they  were  secretly  cherishing  iniquity. 
Ananias  and  Sapphira  acted  the  part  of  deceivers,  pretend- 
ing to  make  an  entire  sacrifice  for  God,  wrhen  they  were  cov- 
etously withholding  a  portion  for  themselves.  The  Spirit  of 
truth  revealed  to  the  apostles  the  real  character  of  these 
pretenders,  and  the  judgments  of  God  rid  the  church  of  this 
foul  blot  upon  its  purity.  This  signal  evidence  of  the 
discerning  Spirit  of  Christ  in  the  church  was  a  terror  to 
hypocrites  and  evil-doers.  They  could  not  long  remain  in 
connection  with  those  who  were,  in  habit  and  disposition, 
constant  representatives  of  Christ;  and  as  trials  and  perse- 
cution came  upon  his  followers,  those  only  who  were  willing 
to  forsake  all  for  the  truth's  sake  desired  to  become  his  dis- 
ciples. Thus,  as  long  as  persecution  continued,  the  church 
remained  comparatively  pure.  But  as  it  ceased,  converts 
\\cre  added  who  were  less  sincere  and  devoted,  and  the  way 
was  opened  for  Satan  to  obtain  a  foot-hold. 

But  there  is  no  union  between  the  Prince  of  light  and  the 
prince  of  darkness,  and  there  can  be  no  union  between  their 
followers.  When  Christians  consented  to  unite  with  those 


PERSECUTION  /A  THE  FIRST  CENTURIES.       45 

who  were  but  half  converted  from  paganism,  they  entered 
upon  a  path  which  led  farther  and  farther  from  the  truth. 
Satan  exulted  that  he  had  succeeded  in  deceiving  so  large  a 
number  of  the  followers  of  Christ.  He  then  brought  his 
power  to  bear  more  fully  upon  these,  and  inspired  them  to 
persecute  those  who  remained  true  to  God.  None  under- 
stood so  well  how  to  oppose  the  true  Christian  faith  as  did 
those  who  had  once  been  its  defenders;  and  these  apostate 
Christians,  uniting  with  their  half-pagan  companions,  di- 
rected their  warfare  against  the  most  essential  features  of 
the  doctrines  of  Christ. 

It  required  a  desperate  struggle  for  those  who  would  be 
faithful  to  stand  firm  against  the  deceptions  and  abomina- 
tions which  were  disguised  in  sacerdotal  garments  and  in- 
troduced into  the  church.  The  Bible  was  not  accepted  as 
the  standard  of  faith.  The  doctrine  of  religious  freedom 
was  termed  heresy,  and  its  upholders  were  hated  and  pro- 
scribed. 

After  a  long  and  severe  conflict,  the  faithful  few  decided 
to  dissolve  all  union  with  the  apostate  church  if  she  still 
refused  to  free  herself  from  falsehood  and  idolatry.  They 
saw  that  separation  was  an  absolute  necessity  if  they  would 
obey  the  Word  of  God.  They  dared  not  tolerate  errors  fatal 
to  their  own  souls,  and  set  an  example  which  would  imperil 
the  faith  of  their  children  and  children's  children.  To 
secure  peace  and  unity  they  were  ready  to  make  any  con- 
cession consistent  with  fidelity  to  God;  but  they  felt  that 
even  peace  would  be  too  dearly  purchased  at  the  sacrifice  of 
principle.  If  unity  could  be  secured  only  by  the  compro- 
mise of  truth  and  righteousness,  then  let  there  be  difference, 
and  even  war. 

Well  would  it  be  for  the  church  and  the  world  if  the  prin- 
ciples that  actuated  those  steadfast  souls  were  revived  in  the 
hearts  of  God's  professed  people.  There  is  an  alarming  in- 
difference"in  regard  to  the  doctrines  which  are  the  pillars  of 
the  Christian  faith.  The  opinion  is  gaining  ground,  that, 


46  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

after  all,  these  are  not  of  vital  importance.  This  degeneracy 
is  strengthening  the  hands  of  the  agents  of  Satan,  so  that 
false  theories  and  fatal  delusions  which  the  faithful  in  ages 
past  imperiled  their  lives  to  resist  and  expose,  are  now  re- 
garded with  favor  by  thousands  who  claim  to  be  followers 
of  Christ. 

The  early  Christians  were  indeed  a  peculiar  people.  Their 
blameless  deportment  and  unswerving  faith  were  a  continual 
reproof  that  disturbed  the  sinner's  peace.  Though  few  in 
numbers,  without  wealth,  position,  or  honorary  titles,  they 
were  a  terror  to  evil-doers  wherever  their  character  and  doc- 
trines were  known.  Therefore  they  were  hated  by  the 
wicked,  even  as  Abel  was  hated  by  the  ungodly  Cain.  For 
the  same  reason  that  Cain  slew  Abel  did  those  who  sought 
to  throw  off  the  restraint  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  put  to  death 
God's  people.  It  was  for  the  same  reason  that  the  Jews  re- 
jected and  crucified  the  Saviour, — because  the  purity  and 
holiness  of  his  character  was  a  constant  rebuke  to  their  self- 
ishness and  corruption.  From  the  days  of  Christ  until  now, 
his  faithful  disciples  have  excited  the  hatred  and  opposition 
of  those  who  love  and  follow  the  ways  of  sin. 

How,  then,  can  the  gospel  be  called  a  message  of  peace? 
When  Isaiah  foretold  the  birth  of  the  Messiah,  he  ascribed 
to  him  the  title,  "  Prince  of  peace."  When  angels  announced 
to  the  shepherds  that  Christ  was  born,  they  sung  above  the 
plains  of  Bethlehem,  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on 
earth  peace,  good  will  toward  men."  *  There  is  a  seeming 
contradiction  between  these  prophetic  declarations  and  the 
words  of  Christ,  "  I  came  not  to  send  peace,  but  a  sword." a 
But  rightly  understood,  the  two  are  in  perfect  harmony. 
The  gospel  is  a  message  of  peace.  Christianity  is  a  system, 
which,  received  and  obeyed,  would  spread  peace,  harmony, 
and  happiness  throughout  the  earth.  The  religion  of  Christ 
will  unite  in  close  brotherhood  all  who  accept  its  teachings. 
It  was  the  mission  of  Jesus  to  reconcile  men  to  God,  and 
1  Luke  2 : 14.  2  Matt.  10 : 34. 


PERSECUTION  IN   THE  FIRST  CENTURIES.      47 

thus  to  one  another.  But  the  world  at  large  are  under  tho 
control  of  Satan,  Christ's  bitterest  foe.  The  gospel  presents 
to  them  principles  of  life  which  are  wholly  at  variance  with 
their  habits  and  desires,  and  they  rise  in  rebellion  against 
it.  They  hate  the  purity  which  reveals  and  condemns  their 
sins,  and  they  persecute  and  destroy  those  who  would  urge 
upon  them  its  just  and  holy  claims.  It  is  in  this  sense — 
because  the  exalted  truths  it  brings,  occasion  hatred  and 
strife — that  the  gospel  is  called  a  sword. 

The  mysterious  providence  which  permits  the  righteous 
to  suffer  persecution  at  the  hand  of  the  wicked,  has  been  a 
cause  of  great  perplexity  to  many  who  are  weak  in  faith. 
Some  are  even  ready  to  cast  away  their  confidence  in  God, 
because  he  suffers  the  basest  of  men  to  prosper,  while  the 
best  and  purest  are  afflicted  and  tormented  by  their  cruel 
power.  How,  it  is  asked,  can  One  who  is  just  and  merciful, 
and  who  is  also  infinite  in  power,  tolerate  such  injustice  and 
oppression  ?  This  is  a  question  with  which  we  have  nothing 
to  do.  God  has  given  us  sufficient  evidence  of  his  love,  and 
we  are  not  to  doubt  his  goodness  because  we  cannot  under- 
stand the  workings  of  his  providence.  Said  the  Saviour  to 
his  disciples,  foreseeing  the  doubts  that  would  press  upon 
their  souls  in  days  of  trial  and  darkness,  "Remember  the 
word  that  I  said  unto  you,  The  servant  is  not  greater  than 
his  lord.  If  they  have  persecuted  me,  they  will  also  perse- 
cute you."1  Jesus  suffered  for  us  more  than  any  of  his 
followers  can  be  made  to  suffer  through  the  cruelty  of  wicked 
men.  Those  who  are  called  to  endure  torture  and  martyrdom, 
are  but  following  in  the  steps  of  God's  dear  Son. 

"The  Lord  is  not  slack  concerning  his  promise."3  He 
does  not  forget  or  neglect  his  children;  but  he  permits  the 
wicked  to  reveal  their  true  character,  that  none  who  desire 
to  do  his  will  may  be  deceived  concerning  them.  Again, 
the  righteous  are  placed  in  the  furnace  of  affliction,  that  they 
themselves  may  be  purified;  that  their  example  may  con- 
1  John  15: 20.  22rcter3:9. 


48  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

vmce  others  of  the  reality  of  faith  and  godliness;  and  aiso 
that  their  consistent  course  may  condemn  the  ungodly  and 
unbelieving. 

God  permits  the  wicked  to  prosper,  and  to  reveal  their 
enmity  against  him,  that  when  they  shall  have  filled  up  the 
measure  of  their  iniquity,  all  may  see  his  justice  and  mercy 
in  their  utter  destruction.  The  day  of  his  '"?ngeance  hastens, 
#hen  all  who  have  transgressed  his  la\^  and  oppressed  his 
people  will  meet  the  just  recompense  of  their  deeds;  when 
every  act  of  cruelty  or  injustice  toward  God's  faithful  ones 
will  be  punished  as  though  done  to  Christ  himself. 

There  is  another  and  more  important  question  that  should 
engage  the  attention  of  the  churches  of  to-day.  The  apostle 
Paul  declares  that  "  all  that  will  live  godly  in  Christ  Jesus 
shall  suffer  persecution." 1  Why  is  it,  then,  that  persecution 
seems  in  a  great  degree  to  slumber? — The  only  reason  is. 
that  the  church  has  conformed  to  the  world's  standard,  and 
therefore  awakens  no  opposition.  The  religion  which  ic 
current  in  our  day  is  not  of  the  pure  and  holy  character 
that  marked  the  Christian  faith  in  the  days  of  Christ  and 
'his  apostles.  It  is  only  because  of  the  spirit  of  compromise 
with  sin,  because  the  great  truths  of  the  Word  of  God  are 
so  indifferently  regarded,  because  there  is  so  little  vital  rjod- 
liness  in  the  church,  that  Christianity  is  apparently  so  pop- 
ular with  the  world.  Let  there  be  a  revival  of  the  faith  and 
power  of  the  early  church,  and  the  spirit  of  persecution  v/ill 
be  revived,  and  the  fires  of  persecution  will  be  rekindled. 

.  3:12. 


OF   THE 

/TV 


CHAPTER    III. 


THE  APOSTASY. 

THE  apostle  Paul,  in  his  second  letter  to  the  Thessalo- 
nians,  foretold  the  great  apostasy  which  would  result  in  the 
establishment  of  the  papal  power.  He  declared  that  the 
day  of  Christ  should  not  come,  "  except  there  come  a  falling 
away  first,  and  that  man  of  sin  be  revealed,  the  son  of  per- . 
dition;  who  opposeth  and  exalteth  himself  above  all  that  is 
called  God,  or  that  is  worshiped ;  so  ,that  he  as  God  sitteth 
in  the  temple  of  God,  showing  himself  that  he  is  God."1 
And  furthermore,  the  apostle  warns  his  brethren  that  "the 
mystery  of  iniquity  doth  already  work."1  Even  at  that 
early  date  he  saw,  creeping  into  the  church,  errors  that 
would  prepare  the  way  for  the  development  of  the  papacy. 

Little  by  little,  at  first  in  stealth  and  silence,  and  then 
more  openly  as  it  increased  in  strength  and  gained  control 
of  the  minds  of  men,  the  mystery  of  iniquity  carried  for- 
ward its  deceptive  and  blasphemous  work.  Almost  imper- 
ceptibly the  customs  of  heathenism  found  their  way  into 
the  Christian  church.  The  spirit  of  compromise  and  con- 
formity was  restrained  for  a  time  by  the  fierce  persecutions 
which  the  church  endured  under  paganism.  But  as  perse- 
cution ceased,  and  Christianity  entered  the  courts  and  pal- 
aces of  kings,  she  laid  aside  the  humble  simplicity  of  Christ 
and  his  apostles  for  the  pomp  and  pride  of  pagan  priests 
and  rulers;  and  in  place  of  the  requirements  of  God,  she 
substituted  human  theories  and  traditions.  Tjhe  nominal 

12Thess.  2:3,4,  7. 
6  (49) 


50  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


conversion  of  Coiistantine,  in  the  early  part  of  the  fourth 
century,  caused  great  rejoicing;  and  the  world,  cloaked  with 
a  form  of  righteousness,  walked  into  the  church.  Now 
the  work  of  corruption  rapidly  progressed.  Paganism,  while 
appearing  to  be  vanquished,  became  the  conqueror.  Her 
spirit  controlled  the  church.  Her  doctrines,  ceremonies, 
and  superstitions  were  incorporated  into  the  faith  and  wor- 
ship of  the  professed  followers  of  Christ. 

This  compromise  between  paganism  and  Christianity  re- 
sulted in  the  development  of  the  "man  of  sin"  foretold  in 
prophecy  as  opposing  and  exalting  himself  above  God. 
That  gigantic  system  of  false  religion  is  a  masterpiece  of 
Satan's  power, — a  monument  of  his  efforts  to  seat  himself 
upon  the  throne  to  rule  the  earth  according  to  his  will. 

Satan  once  endeavored  to  form  a  compromise  with  Christ. 
He  came  to  the  Son  of  God  in  the  wilderness  of  temptation, 
and,  showing  him  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  and  the 
glory  of  them,  offered  to  give  all  into  his  hands  if  he  would 
but  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  prince  of  darkness. 
Christ  rebuked  the  presumptuous  tempter,  and  forced  him 
to  depart.  But  Satan  meets  with  greater  success  in  present- 
ing the  same  temptations  to  man.  To  secure  worldly  gains 
and  honors,  the  church  was  led  to  seek  the  favor  and  sup- 
port of  the  great  men  of  earth,  and  having  thus  rejected 
Christ,  she  was  induced  to  yield  allegiance  to  the  represent- 
ative of  Satan, — the  bishop  of  Rome. 

It  is  one  of  the  leading  doctrines  of  Romanism  that  the 
pope  is  the  visible  head  of  the  universal  church  of  Christ, 
invested  with  supreme  authority  over  bishops  and  pastors 
in  all  parts  of  the  world.  More  than  this,  the  pope  has 
arrogated  the  very  titles  of  Deity.  He  styles  himself  "  Lord 
God  the  Pope,"  assumes  infallibility,  and  demands  that  all 
men  pay  him  homager  Thus  the  same  claim  urged  by 
Satan  in  the  wilderness  of  temptation  is  still  urged  by  him 
through  the  Church  of  Rome,  and  vast  numbers  are  ready 
to  yield  him  homage. 


THE  APOSTASY.  51 

But  those  who  fear  and  reverence  God  meet  this  Heaven- 
daring  assumption  as  Christ  met  the  solicitations  of  the 
wily  foe :  "  Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him 
only  shalt  thou  serve." l  God  has  never  given  a  hint  in  his 
Word  that  he  has  appointed  any  man  to  be  the  head  of  the 
church.  The  doctrine  of  papal  supremacy  is  directly  op- 
posed to  the  teachings  of  the  Scriptures.  The  pope  can 
have  no  power  over  Christ's  church  except  by  usurpation. 

Romanists  have  persisted  in  bringing  against  Protestants 
the  charge  of  heresy,  and  willful  separation  from  the  true 
church.  But  these  accusations  apply  rather  to  themselves. 
They  are  the  ones  who  laid  down  the  banner  of  Christ,  and 
departed  from  "the  faith  which  was  once  delivered  unto 
the  saints." 2 

Satan  well  knew  that  the  Holy  Scriptures  would  enable 
men  to  discern  his  deceptions  and  withstand  his  power.  It 
was  by  the  Word  that  even  the  Saviour  of  the  world  had 
resisted  his  attacks.  At  every  assault,  Christ  presented  the 
shield  of  eternal  truth,  saying,  "It  is  written."  To  every 
suggestion  of  the  adversary,  he  opposed  the  wisdom  and 
power  of  the  Word.  In  order  for  Satan  to  maintain  his 
sway  over  men,  and  establish  the  authority  of  the  papal 
usurper,  he  must  keep  them  in  ignorance  of  the  Scriptures. 
The  Bible  would  exalt  God,  and  place  finite  men  in  their 
true  position ;  therefore  its  sacred  truths  must  be  concealed 
and  suppressed.  This  logic  was  adopted  by  the  Roman 
Church.  For  hundreds  of  years  the  circulation  of  the  Bible 
was  prohibited.  The  people  were  forbidden  to  read  it  or  to 
have  it  in  their  houses,  and  unprincipled  priests  and  prelates 
interpreted  its  teachings  to  sustain  their  pretensions.  Thus 
the  pope  came  to  be  almost  universally  acknowledged  as 
the  vicegerent  of  God  on  earth,  endowed  with  authority- 
over  Church  and  State. 

The  detector  of  error  having  been  removed,  Satan  worked 
according  to  his  will.  Prophecy  had  declared  that  the  pa- 
1  Luke  4: 8.  2Jude  3. 


52 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


pacy  was  to  "think  to  change  times  and  laws."1  This  work 
it  was  not  slow  to  attempt.  To  afford  converts  from  heathen- 
ism a  substitute  for  the  worship  of  idols,  and  thus  to  pro- 
mote their  nominal  acceptance  of  Christianity,  the  adoration 
of  images  and  relics  was  gradually  introduced  into  the 
Christian  worship.  The  decree  of  a  general  council 2  finally 
established  this  system  of  idolatry.  To  complete  the  sacri- 
legious work,  Rome  presumed  to  expunge  from  the  law  of 
God  the  second  commandment,  forbidding  image  worship, 
and  to  divide  the  tenth  commandment,  in  order  to  preserve 
the  number. 

The  spirit  of  concession  to  paganism  opened  the  way  for 
a  still  further  disregard  of  Heaven's  authority.  Satan  tam- 
pered with  the  fourth  commandment  also,  and  essayed  to 
set  aside  the  ancient  Sabbath,  the  day  which  God  had 
blessed  and  sanctified, 3  and  in  its  stead  to  exalt  the  festival 
observed  by  the  heathen  as  "the  venerable  day  of  the  sun." 
This  change  was  not  at  first  attempted  openly.  In  the  first 
centuries  the  true  Sabbath  had  been  kept  by  all  Christians. 
They  were  jealous  for  the  honor  of  God,  and,  believing  that 
his  law  is  immutable,  they  zealously  guarded  the  sacredness 
of  its  precepts.  But  with  great  subtlety,  Satan  worked 
through  his  agents  to  bring  about  his  object.  That  the 
attention  of  the  people  might  be  called  to  the  Sunday,  it 
was  made  a  festival  in  honor  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ. 
Religious  services  were  held  upon  it ;  yet  it  was  regarded  as 
a  day  of  recreation,  the  Sabbath  being  still  sacredly  ob- 
served. 

To  prepare  the  way  for  the  work  which  he  designed  to 
accomplish,  Satan  had  led  the  Jews,  before  the  advent  of 
Christ,  to  load  down  the  Sabbath  with  the  most  rigorous 
exactions,  making  its  observance  a  burden.  Now,  taking 
advantage  of  the  false  light  in  which  he  had  thus  caused  it 
to  be  regarded,  he  cast  contempt  upon  it  as  a  Jewish  insti1 
tution.  While  Christians  continued  to  observe  the  Sunday 
1  Dan.  7:26.  *  Second  Council  of  Nice,  A.  D.  787.  3  Gen.  2 :  2,  3. 


THE  APOSTASY.  53 


as  a  joyous  festival,  he  led  them,  in  order  to  show  their 
hatred  of  Judaism,  to  make  the  Sabbath  a  fast,  a  day  of 
sadness  and  gloom. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  fourth  century,  the  emperor  Con- 
stantine  issued  a  decree  making  Sunday  a  public  festival 
throughout  the  Roman  Empire.1  The  day  of  the  sun  was 
reverenced  by  his  pagan  subjects,  and  was  honored  by  Chris- 
tians; it  was  the  emperor's  policy  to  unite  the  conflicting 
interests  of  heathenism  and  Christianity.  He  was  urged  to 
do  this  by  the  bishops  of  the  church,  who,  inspired  by  ambi- 
tion, and  thirst  for  power,  perceived  that  if  the  same  day  was 
observed  by  both  Christians  and  the  heathen,  it  would  pro- 
mote the  nominal  acceptance  of  Christianity  by  pagans,  and 
thus  advance  the  power  and  glory  of  the  church.  But  while 
Christians  were  gradually  led  to  regard  Sunday  as  possess- 
ing a  degree  of  sacredness,  they  still  held  the  true  Sabbath 
as  the  holy  of  the  Lord,  and  observed  it  in  obedience  to  the 
fourth  commandment. 

The  arch-deceiver  had  not  completed  his  work.  He  was 
resolved  to  gather  the  Christian  world  under  his  banner, 
and  to  exercise  his  power  through  his  vicegerent,  the  proud 
pontiff  who  claimed  to  be  the  representative  of  Christ. 
Through  half-converted  pagans,  ambitious  prelates,  and 
world-loving  churchmen,  he  accomplished  his  purpose. 
Vast  councils  were  held,  from  time  to  time,  in  which  the 
dignitaries  of  the  church  were  convened  from  all  the  world. 
In  nearly  every  council  the  Sabbath  which  God  had  insti- 
tuted was  pressed  down  a  little  lower,  while  the  Sunday  was 
correspondingly  exalted.  Thus  the  pagan  festival  came 
finally  to  be  honored  as  a  divine  institution,  while  the  Bible 
Sabbath  was  pronounced  a  relic  of  Judaism,  and  its  observ- 
ers were  declared  to  be  accursed. 

The  great  apostate  had  succeeded  in  exalting  himself 
"  above  all  that  is  called  God,  or  that  is  worshiped." 2  He 
had  dared  to  change  the  only  precept  of  the  divine  law  that 
unmistakably  points  all  mankind  to  the  true  and  living 

i  See  Appendix,  Note  1.  2  2  Thess.  2  : 4. 


54  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


God.  In  the  fourth  commandment,  God  is  revealed  as  the 
Creator  of  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  and  is  thereby  distin- 
guished from  all  false  gods.  It  was  as  a  memorial  of  the 
work  of  creation  that  the  seventh  day  was  sanctified  as  a 
rest-day  for  man.  It  was  designed  to  keep  the  living  God 
ever  before  the  minds  of  men  as  the  source  of  being  anci 
the  object  of  reverence  and  worship.  Satan  strives  to  turn 
men  from  their  allegiance  to  God,  and  from  rendering  obe- 
dience to  his  law;  therefore  he  directs  his  efforts  especially 
against  that  commandment  which  points  to  God  as  the 
Creator. 

Protestants  now  urge  that  the  resurrection  of  Christ  on 
Sunday  made  it  the  Christian  Sabbath.  But  Scripture  evi- 
dence is  lacking.  No  such  honor  was  given  to  the  day  by 
Christ  or  his  apostles.  The  observance  of  Sunday  as  a 
Christian  institution  had  its  origin  in  that  "  mystery  of  law- 
lessness"1 which,  even  in  Paul's  day,  had  begun  its  work. 
Where  and  when  die?  tho  Lord  adopt  this  child  of  the 
papacy?  What  valid  reason  can  be  given  for  a  change 
which  the  Scriptures  do  not  sanction? 

In  the  sixth  century  the  papacy  had  become  firmly  estab- 
lished. Its  seat  of  power  was  fixed  in  the  imperial  city, 
and  the  bishop  of  Rome  was  declared  to  be  the  head  over 
the  entire  church.  Paganism  had  given  place  to  the  pa- 
pacy. The  dragon  had  given  to  the  beast  "his  power,  and 
his  seat,  and  great  authority." 2  And  now  began  the  1260 
years  of  papal  oppression  foretold  in  the  prophecies  of  Daniel 
and  the  Revelation.8  Christians  were  forced  to  choose,  either 
to  yield  their  integrity  and  accept  the  papal  ceremonies  and 
worship,  or  to  wear  away  their  lives  in  dungeons  or  suffer 
death  by  the  rack,  the  fagot,  or  the  headsman's  ax.  Now 
were  fulfilled  the  words  of  Jesus,  "Ye  shall  be  betrayed 
both  by  parents,  and  brethren,  and  kinsfolks,  and  friends; 
and  some  of  you  shall  they  cause  to  be  put  to  death.  And 
ye  shall  be  hated  of  all  men  for  my  name's  sake."4  Perse- 

12  The.«s.  2:7,  revised  version.    aRev.  13:2;  see  Appendix,  Note  2. 
3  Dan.  7  : 25;  Re v.  13 : 5-7.  4  Luke  21 : 16, 1 7. 


THE  APOSTASY.  65 


cution  opened  upon  the  faithful  with  greater  fury  than  ever 
before,  and  the  world  became  a  vast  battle-field.  For  hun- 
dreds of  years  the  church  of  Christ  found  refuge  in  seclusion 
and  obscurity.  Thus  says  the  prophet:  "The  woman  fled 
into  the  wilderness,  where  she  hath  a  place  prepared  of  God, 
that  they  should  feed  her  there  a  thousand  two  hundred  and 
threescore  days."1 

The  accession  of  the  Roman  Church  to  power  marked  the 
beginning  of  the  Dark  Ages.  As  her  power  increased,  the 
darkness  deepened.  Faith  was  transferred  from  Christ,  the 
true  foundation,  to  the  pope  of  Rome.  Instead  of  trusting 
in  the  Son  of  God  for  forgiveness  of  sins  and  for  eternal  sal- 
vation, the  people  looked  to  the  pope,  and  to  the  priests  and 
prelates  to  whom  he  delegated  authority.  They  were  taught 
that  the  pope  was  their  earthly  mediator,  and  that*  none 
could  approach  God  except  through  him,  and,  further,  that 
he  stood  in  the  place  of  God  to  them,  and  was  therefore  to 
be  implicitly  obeyed.  A  deviation  from  his  requirements 
was  sufficient  cause  for  the  severest  punishment  to  be  visited 
upon  the  bodies  and  souls  of  the  offenders.  Thus  the  minds 
of  the  people  were  turned  away  from  God  to  fallible,  erring, 
and  cruel  men,  nay  more,  to  the  prince  of  darkness  himself, 
who  exercised  his  power  through  them.  Sin  was  disguised 
in  a  garb  of  sanctity.  When  the  Scriptures  are  suppressed, 
and  man  comes  to  regard  himself  as  supreme,  we  need  look 
only  for  fraud,  deception,  and  debasing  iniquity.  With  the 
elevation  of  human  laws  and  traditions,  was  manifest  the 
corruption  that  ever  results  from  setting  aside  the  law  of 
God. 

Those  were  days  of  peril  for  the  church  of  Christ.  The 
faithful  standard-bearers  were  few  indeed.  Though  the 
truth  was  not  left  without  witnesses,  yet  at  times  it  seemed 
that  error  and  superstition  would  wholly  prevail,  and  true 
religion  would  be  banished  from  the  earth.  The  gospel  was 
lost  sight  of,  but  the  forms  of  religion  were  multiplied,  and 
the  people  were  burdened  with  rigorous  exactions. 

1  Rev.  12:6. 


56  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

They  were  taught  not  only  to  look  to  the  pope  as  their 
mediator,  but  to  trust  to  works  of  their  own  to  atone  for  sin. 
Long  pilgrimages,  acts  of  penance,  the  worship  of  relics,  the 
erection  of  churches,  shrines,  and  altars,  the  payment  of 
large  sums  to  the  church, — these  and  many  similar  acts 
were  enjoined  to  appease  the  wrath  of  God  or  to  secure  his 
favor;  as  if  God  were  like  men,  to  be  angered  at  trifles,  or 
pacified  by  gifts  or  acts  of  penance ! 

Notwithstanding  that  vice  prevailed,  even  among  the 
leaders  of  the  Romish  Church,  her  influence  seemed  steadily 
to  increase.  About  the  close  of  the  eighth  century,  papists 
put  forth  the  claim  that  in  the  first  ages  of  the  church  the 
bishops  of  Rome  had  possessed  the  same  spiritual  power 
which  they  now  assumed.  To  establish  this  claim,  some 
means  must  be  employed  to  give  it  a  show  of  authority;  and 
this  was  readily  suggested  by  the  father  of  lies.  Ancient 
writings  were  forged  by  monks.  Decrees  of  councils  before 
unheard  of  were  discovered,  establishing  the  universal  su- 
premacy of  the  pope  from  the  earliest  times.  And  a  church 
that  had  rejected  the  truth,  greedily  accepted  these  decep- 
tions. 

The  few  faithful  builders  upon  the  true  foundation l  were 
perplexed  and  hindered,  as  the  rubbish  of  false  doctrine 
obstructed  the  work.  Like  the  builders  upon  the  wall  of 
Jerusalem  in  Nehemiah's  day,  some  were  ready  to  say,  "  The 
strength  of  the  bearers  of  burdens  is  decayed,  and  there  is 
much  rubbish,  so  that  we  are  not  able  to  build." 3  Wearied 
with  the  constant  struggle  against  persecution,  fraud,  iniquity, 
and  every  other  obstacle  that  Satan  could  devise  to  hinder 
their  progress,  some  who  had  been  faithful  builders  became 
disheartened ;  and  for  the  sake  of  peace  and  security  for  their 
property  and  their  lives  they  turned  away  from  the  true 
foundation.  Others,  undaunted  by  the  opposition  of  their 
enemies,  fearlessly  declared,  "Be  not  ye  afraid  of  them; 
remember  the  Lord,  which  is  great  and  terrible ; 8  and  they 
1 1  Cor.  3 : 10, 11.  2  Neh.  4 : 10.  »  Neh.  4 : 14. 


THE  APOSTASY.  57 


proceeded  with  the  work,  every  one  with  his  sword  girded 
by  his  side.1 

The  same  spirit  of  hatred  and  opposition  to  the  truth  has 
inspired  the  enemies  of  God  in  every  age,  and  the  same 
vigilance  and  fidelity  have  been  required  in  his  servants. 
The  words  of  Christ  to  the  first  disciples  are  applicable  to 
his  followers  to  the  close  of  time:  "What  I  say  unto  you  I 
say  unto  all,  Watch." 2 

The  darkness  seemed  to  grow  more  dense.  Image  worship 
became  more  general.  Candles  were  burned  before  images, 
and  prayers  were  offered  to  them.  The  most  absurd  and 
superstitious  customs  prevailed.  The  minds  of  men  were  so 
completely  controlled  by  superstition  that  reason  itself  seemed 
to  have  lost  her  sway.  While  priests  and  bishops  were  them- 
selves pleasure-loving,  sensual,  and  corrupt,  it  could  only  be 
expected  that-  the  people  who  looked  to  them  for  guidance 
would  be  sunken  in  ignorance  and  vice. 

Another  step  in  papal  assumption  was  taken,  when,  in  the 
eleventh  century,  Pope  Gregory  VII.  proclaimed  the  per- 
fection of  the  Romish  Church.  Among  the  propositions 
which  he  put  forth,  was  one  declaring  that  the  church  had 
never  erred,  nor  would  it  ever  err,  according  to  the  Script- 
ures. But  the  Scripture  proofs  did  not  accompany  the  as- 
sertion. The  proud  pontiff  next  claimed  the  power  to  depose 
emperors,  and  declared  that  no  sentence  which  he  pronounced 
could  be  reversed  by  ariy  one,  but  that  it  was  his  prerogative 
to  reverse  the  decisions  of  all  others. 

A  striking  illustration  of  the  tyrannical  character  of  this 
advocate  of  infallibility  was  given  in  his  treatment  of  the 
German  emperor,  Henry  IV.  For  presuming  to  disregard 
the  pope's  authority,  this  monarch  was  declared  to  be  ex- 
communicated and  dethroned.  Terrified  by  the  desertion 
and  threats  of  his  own  princes,  who  were  encouraged  in  re- 
bellion against  him  by  the  papal  mandate,  Henry  felt  .the 
necessity  of  making  his  peace  with  Rome.  In  company 
:17.  2  Mark  13: 37. 


58  TEE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

with  his  wife  and  a  faithful  servant,  lie  crossed  the  Alps  in 
midwinter,  that  he  might  humble  himself  before  the  pope. 
Upon  reaching  the  castle  whither  Gregory  had  withdrawn, 
he  was  conducted,  without  his  guards,  into  an  outer  court, 
and  there,  in  the  severe  cold  of  winter,  with  uncovered  head 
and  naked  feet,  and  in  a  miserable  dress,  he  awaited  the 
pope's  permission  to  come  into  his  presence.  Not  until  he 
had  continued  three  days  fasting  and  making  confession, 
did  the  pontiff  condescend  to  grant  him  pardon.  Even  then 
it  was  only  upon  condition  that  the  emperor  should  await 
the  sanction  of  the  pope  before  resuming  the  insignia  or 
exercising  the  power  of  royalty.  And  Gregory,  elated  with 
his  triumph,  boasted  that  it  was  his  duty,  "  to  pull  down  the 
pride  of  kings." 

How  striking  the  contrast  between  the  overbearing  pride 
of  this  haughty  pontiff  and  the  meekness  and  gentleness  of 
Christ,  who  represents  himself  as  pleading  at  the  door  of  the 
heart  for  admittance,  that  he  may  come  in  to  bring  pardon 
and  peace,  and  who  taught  his  disciples,  "  Whosoever  will 
be  chief  among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant." l 

The  advancing  centuries  witnessed  a  constant  increase  of 
error  in  the  doctrines  put  forth  from  Rome.  Even  before 
the  establishment  of  the  papacy,  the  teachings  of  heathen 
philosophers  had  received  attention  and  exerted  an  influence 
in  the  church.  Many  who  professed  conversion  still  clung 
to  the  tenets  of  their  pagan  philosophy,  and  not  only  con- 
tinued its  study  themselves,  but  urged  it  upon  others  as  a 
means  of  extending  their  influence  among  the  heathen. 
Serious  errors  were  thus  introduced  into  the  Christian  faith. 
Prominent  among  these  was  the  belief  in  man's  natural 
immortality  and  his  consciousness  in  death.  'Phis  doetrine 
laid  the  foundation  upon  which  Rome  established  the  in- 
vocation of  saints  and  the  adoration  of  the  virgin  ^lary. 
From  this  sprung  also  the  heresy  of  eternal  torment  for  the 
finally  impenitent,  whieh  was  early  incorporated  into  the 
papal  faith. 

Then  the  way  was  prepared  for  the  introduction  of  still 

i  Matt.  20 : 27. 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


THE  APOSTASY.  69 


another  invention  of  paganism,  which  Rome  named  purga- 
tory, and  employed  to  terrify  the  credulous  and  superstitious 
multitudes.  By  this  heresy  is  affirmed  the  existence  of  a 
place  of  torment,  in  which  the  souls  of  such  as  have  not 
merited  eternal  damnation  are  to  suffer  punishment  for  their 
sins,  and  from  which,  when  freed  from  impurity,  they  are 
admitted  to  Heaven. 

Still  another  fabrication  was  needed  to  enable  Rome  to 
profit  by  the  fears  and  the  vices  of  her  adherents.  This  was 
supplied  by  the  doctrine  of  indulgences.  Full  remission  of 
sins,  past,  prese'nt,  and  future,  and  release  from  all  the  pains 
and  penalties  incurred,  were  promised  to  all  who  would 
enlist  in  the  pontiff's  wars  to  extend  his  temporal  dominion, 
to  punish  his  enemies,  or  to  exterminate  those  who  dared 
deny  his  spiritual  supremacy.  The  people  were  also  taught 
that  by  the  payment  of  money  to  the  church  they  might  free 
themselves  from  sin,  and  also  release  the  souls  of  their  de- 
ceased friends  who  were  confined  in  the  tormenting  flames. 
By  such  means  did  Rome  fill  her  coffers,  and  sustain  the 
magnificence,  luxury,  and  vice  of  the  pretended  represent- 
atives of  Him  who  had  not  where  to  lay  his  head. 

The  scriptural  ordinance  of  the  Lord's  supper  had  been 
supplanted  by  the  idolatrous  sacrifice  of  the  mass.  Papist 
priests  pretended,  by  their  senseless  mummery,  to  convert 
the  simple  bread  and  wine  into  the  actual  body  and  blood 
of  Christ.  With  blasphemous  presumption,  they  openly 
claimed  the  power  of  "creating  God,  the  Creator  of  all 
things."  All  Christians  were  required,  on  pain  of  death, 
to  avow  their  faith  in  this  horrible,  Heaven-insulting  heresy. 
Multitudes  who  refused  were  given  to  the  flames. 

In  the  thirteenth  century  was  established  that  most  terrible 
of  all  the  engines  of  the  papacy, — the  Inquisition.  The 
prince  of  darkness  wrought  with  the  leaders  of  the  papal 
hierarchy.  In  their  secret  councils,  Satan  and  his  angels 
controlled  the  minds  of  evil  men,  while  unseen  in  the  midst 
stood  an  angel  of  God,  taking  the  fearful  record  of  their  in- 
iquitous decrees,  and  writing  the  history  of  deeds  too  hor- 


60  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


rible  to  appear  to  human  eyes.  "  Babylon  the  great "  was 
"  drunken  with  the  blood  of  the  saints."  The  mangled  forms 
of  millions  of  martyrs  cried  to  God  for  vengeance  upon  that 
apostate  power. 

Popery  had  become  the  world's  despot.  Kings  and  emper- 
ors bowed  to  the  decrees  of  the  Roman  pontiff.  The  destinies 
of  men,  both  for  time  and  for  eternity,  seemed  under  his  con- 
trol. For  hundreds  of  years  the  doctrines  of  Rome  had  been 
extensively  and  implicitly  received,  its  rites  reverently  per- 
formed>  its  festivals  generally  observed.  Its  clergy  were  hon- 
ored and  liberally  sustained.  Never  since  has  the  Roman 
Church  attained  to  greater  dignity,  magnificence,  or  power. 

The  noontide  of  the  papacy  was  the  world's  moral  mid- 
night. The  Holy  Scriptures  were  almost  unknown,  not  only 
to  the  people,  but  to  the  priests.  Like  the  Pharisees  of  old, 
the  papist  leaders  hated  the  light  which  would  reveal  their 
sins.  God's  law,  the  standard  of  righteousness,  having  been 
removed,  they  exercised  power  without  limit,  and  practiced 
vice  without  restraint.  Fraud,  avarice,  and  profligacy  pre- 
vailed. Men  shrank  from  no  crime  by  which  they  could 
gain  wealth  or  position.  The  palaces  of  popes  and  prelates 
were  scenes  of  the  vilest  debauchery.  Some  of  the  reigning 
pontiffs  were  guilty  of  crimes  so  revolting  that  secular  rulers 
endeavored  to  depose  these  dignitaries  of  the  church  as 
monsters  too  vile  to  be  tolerated.  For  centuries  Europe  had 
made  no  progress  in  learning,  arts,  or  civilization.  A  moral 
and  intellectual  paralysis  had  fallen  upon  Christendom. 

The  condition  of  the  world  under  the  Romish  power  pre- 
sented a  fearful  and  striking  fulfillment  of  the  words  of  the 
prophet  Hosea :  "  My  people  are  destroyed  for  lack  of  knowl- 
edge; because  thou  hast  rejected  knowledge,  I  will  also 
reject  thee;  .  .  .  seeing  thou  hast  forgotten  the  law  of 
thy  God,  I  will  also  forget  thy  children."  "There  is  no 
truth,  nor  mercy,  nor  knowledge  of  God  in  the  land.  By 
swearing,  and  lying,  and  killing,  and  stealing,  and  commit- 
ting adultery,  they  break  out,  and  blood  toucheth  blood."1 
Such,  were  the  results  of  banishing  the  Word  of  God. 
JHosea4:6,l,2, 


CHAPTER    IV. 


THE 

AMID  the  gloom  that  settled  upon  the  earth  during  the 
long  period  of  papal  supremacy,  the  light  of  truth  could  not 
be  wholly  extinguished.  In  every  age  there  were  witnesses 
for  God, — men  who  cherished  faith  in  Christ  as  the  only 
mediator  between  God  and  man,  who  held  the  Bible  as  the 
only  rule  of  life,  and  who  hallowed  the  true  Sabbath.  How 
much  the  world  owes  to  these  men,  posterity  will  never 
know.  They  were  branded  as  heretics,  their  motives  im- 
pugned, their  characters  maligned,  their  writings  suppressed, 
misrepresented,  or  mutilated.  Yet  they  stood  firm,  and  from 
age  to  age  maintained  their  faith  in  its  purity,  as  a  sacred 
heritage  for  the  generations  to  come. 

The  history  of  God's  people  during  the  ages  of  darkness 
that  followed  upon  Rome's  supremacy,  is  written  in  Heaven. 
But  they  have  little  place  in  human  records.  Few  traces 
of  their  existence  can  be  found,  except  in  the  accusations 
of  their  persecutors.  It  was  the  policy  of  Rome  to  obliter- 
ate every  trace  of  dissent  from  her  doctrines  or  decrees. 
Everything  heretical,  whether  persons  or  writings,  was  de- 
stroyed. A  single  expression  of  doubt,  a  question  as  to  the 
authority  of  papal  dogmas,  was  enough  to  forfeit  the  life  of 
rich  or  poor,  high  or  low.  Rome  endeavored  also  to  destroy 
every  record  of  her  cruelty  toward  dissenters.  Papal  coun- 
cils decreed  that  books  and  writings  containing  such  records 
should  be  committed  to  the  flames.  Before  the  invention 
of  printing,  books  were  few  in  number,  and  in  a  form  not 
favorable  for  preservation ;  therefore  there  was  little  to  pre- 
vent the  Romanists  from  carrying  out  their  purpose. 

(61) 


62 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


No  church  within  the  limits  of  .Romish  jurisdiction  was 
long  left  undisturbed  in  the  enjoyment  of  freedom  of  con- 
science. No  sooner  had  the  papacy  obtained  power  than 
she  stretched  out  her  arms  to  crush  all  that  refused  to  ac- 
knowledge her  sway ;  and  one  after  another,  the  churches 
submitted  to  her  dominion. 

In  Great  Britain,  primitive  Christianity  had  very  early 
taken  root.  The  gospel  received  by  the  Britons  in  the  first 
centuries,  was  then  uncorrupted  by  Romish  apostasy.  Per- 
secution from  pagan  emperors,  which  extended  even  to  these 
far-off  shores,  was  the  only  gift  that  the  first  churches  of 
Britain  received  from  Rome.  Many  of  the  Christians,  flee- 
ing from  persecution  in  England,  found  refuge  in  Scotland; 
thence  the  truth  was  carried  to  Ireland,  and  in  all  these 
countries  it  was  received  with  gladness. 

When  the  Saxons  invaded  Britain,  heathenism  gained 
control.  The  conquerors  disdained  to  be  instructed  by 
their  slaves,  and  the  Christians  were  forced  to  retreat  to  the 
mountains  and  the  wild  moors.  Yet  the  light,  hidden  for 
a  time,  continued  to  burn.  In  Scotland,  a  century  later,  it 
shone  out  with  a  brightness  that  extended  to  far-distant 
lands.  From  Ireland  came  the  pious  Columba  and  his  co- 
laborers,  who,  gathering  about  them  the  scattered  believers 
on  the  lonely  island  of  lona,  made  this  the  center  of  their 
missionary  labors.  Among  these  evangelists  was  an  ob- 
server of  the  Bible  Sabbath,  and  thus  this  truth  was  intr> 
duced  among  the  people.  A  school  was  established  at  lona, 
from  which  missionaries  went  out,  not  only  to  Scotland  and 
England,  but  to  Germany,  Switzerland,  and  even  Italy. 

But  Rome  had  fixed  her  eyes  on  Britain,  and  resolved 
to  bring  it  under  her  supremacy.  In  the  sixth  century 
her  missionaries  undertook  the  conversion  of  the  heathen 
Saxons.  They  were  received  with'  favor  by  the  proud  bar- 
barians, and  they  induced  many  thousands  to  profess  the 
Romish  faith.  As  the  work  progressed,  the  papal  leaders 
and  their  converts  encountered  the  primitive  Christians. 


THE  WALDENSES.  63 

A  striking  contrast  was  presented.  The  latter  were  simple, 
humble,  and  scriptural  in  character,  doctrine,  and  manners, 
while  the  former  manifested  the  superstition,  pomp,  and 
arrogance  of  popery.  The  emissary  of  -Rome  demanded 
that  these  Christian  churches  acknowledge  the  supremacy 
of  the  sovereign  pontiff.  The  Britons  meekly  replied  that 
they  desired  to  love  all  men,  but  that  the  pope  was  not  en- 
titled to  supremacy  in  the  church,  and  they  could  render  to 
him  only  that  submission  which  was  due  to  every  follower 
of  Christ.  Repeated  attempts  were  made  to  secure  their 
allegiance  to  Rome;  but  these  humble  Christians,  amazed 
at  the  pride  displayed  by  her  emissaries,  steadfastly  replied 
that  they  knew  no  other  master  than  Christ.  Now  the  true 
spirit  of  the  papacy  was  revealed.  Said  the  Romish  leader, 
mt  If  you  will  not  receive  brethren  who  bring  you  peace,  you 
shall  receive  enemies  who  will  bring  you  war.  If  you  will 
not  unite  with  us  in  showing  the  Saxons  the  way  of  life, 
you  shall  receive  from  them  the  stroke  of  death."  These 
were  no  idle  threats.  War,  intrigue,  and  deception  were 
employed  against  these  witnesses  for  a  Bible  faith,  until  the 
churches  of  Britain  were  destroyed,  or  forced  to  submit  to 
the  authority  of  the  pope. 

In  lands  beyond  the  jurisdiction  of  Rome,  there  existed 
for  many  centuries  bodies  of  Christians  wiio  remained  al- 
most wholly  free  from  papal  corruption.  They  were  sur- 
rounded by  heathenism,  and  in  the  lapse  of  ages  were 
affected  by  its  errors ;  but  they  continued  to  regard  the  Bible 
as  the  only  rule  of  faith,  and  adhered  to  many  of  its  truths. 
These  Christians  believed  in  the  perpetuity  of  the  law  of 
God,  and  observed  the  Sabbath  of  the  fourth  commandment. 
Churches  that  held  to  this  faith  and  practice,  existed  in 
Central  Africa  and  among  the  Armenians  of  Asia. 

But  of  those  who  resisted  the  encroachments  of  the  papal 
power,  the  Waldenses  stood  foremost.  In  the  very  land 
where  popery  had  fixed  its  seat,  there  its  falsehood  and  cor- 
ruption were  most  steadfastly  resisted.  For  centuries  the 
6 


64 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY 


churches  of  Piedmont  maintained  their  independence;  but 
the  time  came  at  last  when  Rome  insisted  upon  their  sub- 
mission. After  ineffectual  struggles  against  her  tyranny, 
the  leaders  of  these  churches  reluctantly  acknowledged  the 
supremacy  of  the  power  to  which  the  whole  world  seemed 
to  pay  homage.  There  were  some,  however,  who  refused  to 
yield  to  the  authority  of  pope  or  prelate.  They  were  de- 
termined to  maintain  their  allegiance  to  God,  and  to  preserve 
the  purity  and  simplicity  of  their  faith.  A  separation  took 
place.  Those  who  adhered  to  the  ancient  faith  now  with- 
drew; some,  forsaking  their  native  Alps,  raised  the  banner 
of  truth  in  foreign  lands;  others  retreated  to  the  secluded 
glens  and  rocky  fastnesses  of  the  mountains,  and  there  pre- 
served their  freedom  to  worship  God. 

The  faith  which  for  many  centuries  was  held  and  taught 
by  the  Waldensian  Christians  was  in  marked  contrast  to 
the  false  doctrines  put  forth  from  Rome.  Their  religious 
belief  was  founded  upon  the  written  word  of  God,  the  true 
system  of  Christianity.  But  those  humble  peasants,  in  their 
obscure  retreats,  shut  away  from  the  world,  and  bound  to 
daily  toil  among  their  flocks  and  their  vineyards,  had  not 
themselves  arrived  at  the  truth  in  opposition  to  the  dogmas 
and  heresies  of  the  apostate  church.  Theirs  was  not  a  faith 
newly  received.  Their  religious  belief  was  their  inheritance 
from  their  fathers.  They  contended  for  the  faith  of  the 
apostolic  church, — "the  faith  which  was  once  delivered  to 
the  saints."  "The  church  in  the  wilderness,"  and  not  the 
proud  hierarchy  enthroned  in  the  world's  great,  capital,  was 
the  true  church  of  Christ,  the  guardian  of  the  treasures  of 
truth  which  God  has  committed  to  his  people  to  be  given 
to  the  world. 

Among  the  leading  causes  that  had  led  1o  the  separation 
of  the  true  church  from  1  ionic,  was  the.  hatred  of  the  latter 
toward  tho  Bible  Sabbath.  As  foretold  by  prophecy,  the 
papal  power  cast  down  the  truth  to  the  ground.  The  law 
of  God  was  trampled  in  the  dust,  while  the  traditions  and 


THE  WALDENSES.  65 


customs  of  men  were  exalted.  The  churches  that  \\vn> 
under  the  rule  of  the  papacy  were  early  compellecl  to  honor 
the  Sunday  as  a  holy  day.  Amid  the  prevailing  error  and 
superstition,  many,  even  of  the  true  people  of  God,  became 
so  be\vildcred  that  while  they  observed  the  Sabbath  they 
ivfrained  from  labor  also  on  the  Sunday.  But  this  did  not 
satisfy  the  papal  leaders.  They  demanded  not  only  that 
Sunday  be  hallowed,  but  that  the  Sabbath  be  profaned;  and 
they  denounced  in  the  strongest  language  those  who  dared 
to  show  it  honor.  It  was  only  by  fleeing  from  the  power  of 
Rome  that  any  could  obey  God's  law  in  peace. 

The  Waldenses  were  the  first  of  all  the  peoples  of  Europe 
to  obtain  a  translation  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Hundreds  of 
years  before  the  Reformation,  they  possessed  the  Bible  in 
manuscript  in  their  native  tongue.  They  had  the  truth 
unadulterated,  and  this  rendered  them  the  special  objects 
of  hatred  and  persecution.  They  declared  the  Church  of 
Rome  to  be  the  apostate  Babylon  of  the  Apocalypse,  and  at 
the  peril  of  their  lives  they  stood  up  to  resist  her  corruptions. 
While,  under  the  pressure  of  long-continued  persecuti6n, 
some  compromised  their  faith,  little  by  little  yielding  its 
distinctive  principles,  others  held  fast  the  truth.  Through 
ages  of  darkness  and  apostasy,  there  were  Waldenses  who 
denied  the  supremacy  of  Rome,  who  rejected  image  worship 
as  idolatry,  and  who  kept  the  true  Sabbath.  Under  the 
iiereest  tempests  of  opposition  they  maintained  their  faith. 
Though  gashed  by  the  Savoyard  spear,  and  scorched  by  the 
Romish  fagot,  they  stood  unflinchingly  for  God's  Word  and 
his  honor. 

Behind  the  lofty  bulwarks  of  the  mountains, — in  ;ill  ;i 
the  refuge  of  the  persecuted  and  oppressed, — the  \V;il< lenses 
found  a  hiding-place.  Here  the  light  of  truth  was  kept 
burning  amid  the  darkness  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Here,  for 
a  thousand  years,  witnesses  for  the  truth  maintained  the 
ancient  faith. 

God  had  provided  for  his  people  a  sanctuary  of  awful 


66  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

grandeur,  befitting  the  mighty  truths  committed  to  their 
trust.  To  those  faithful  exiles  the  mountains  were  an  em- 
blem of  the  immutable  righteousness  of  Jehovah.  They 
pointed  their  children  to  the  heights  towering  above  them 
in  unchanging  majesty,  and  cpoke  to  them  of  Him  with 
whom  there  is  no  variableness  nor  shadow  of  turning,  whose 
word  is  as  enduring  as  the  everlasting  hills.  God  had  set 
fast  the  mountains,  and  girded  them  with  strength ;  no  arm 
but  that  of  infinite  power  could  move  them  out  of  their 
place.  In  like  manner  he  had  established  his  law,  the 
foundation  of  his  government  in  Heaven  and  upon  earth. 
The  arm  of  man  might  reach  his  fellow-men  and  destroy 
their  lives;  but  that  arm  could  as  readily  uproot  the  mount- 
ains from  their  foundations,  and  hurl  them  into  the  sea,  as 
it  could  change  one  precept  of  the  law  of  Jehovah,  or  blot 
out  one  of  his  promises  to  those  who  do  his  will.  In  their 
fidelity  to  his  law,  God's  servants  should  be  as  firm  as  the 
unchanging  hills. 

The  mountains  that  girded  their  lowly  valleys  were  a 
constant  witness  to  God's  creative  power,  and  a  never-failing 
assurance  of  his  protecting  care.  Those  pilgrims  learned 
to  love  the  silent  symbols  of  Jehovah's  presence.  They  in- 
dulged no  repining  because  of  the  hardships  of  their  lot; 
they  were  never  lonely  amid  the  mountain  .solitudes.  They 
thanked  God  that  he  had  provided  for  them  an  asylum  from 
the  wrath  and  cruelty  of  men.  They  rejoiced  in  their  freedom 
to  worship  before  him.  Often  when  pursued  by  their  ene- 
mies, the  strength  of  the  hills  proved  a  sure  defense.  From 
many  a  lofty  cliff  they  chanted  the  praise  of  God,  and  (lie 
armies  of  Rome  could  not  silence  their  songs  of  thanks- 
giving 

Pure,  simple,  and  fervent  was  the  piety  of  these  followers 
of  Christ.  The  principles  of  truth  they  valued  above  houses 
and  lands,  friends,  kindred,  even  life  itself.  These  principles 
they  earnestly  sought  to  impress  upon  the  hearts  of  the 
young.  From  earliest  childhood  the  youth  were  instructed 


THE  WALDENSES-  67 


in  the  Scriptures,  and  taught  to  sacredly  regard  the  claims 
of  the  law  of  God.  Copies  of  the  Bible  were  rare;  therefore 
its  precious  words  were  committed  to  memory.  Many  were 
able  to  repeat  large  portions  of  both  the  Old  and  the  New 
Testament.  Thoughts  of  God  \\viv  associated  alike  with 
the  sublime  scenery  of  nature  and  with  the  humble  bless- 
ings of  daily  life.  Little  children  learned  to  look  with  grati- 
tude to  God  as  the  giver  of  every  favor  and  every  comfort. 

Parents,  tender  and  affectionate  as  they  were,  loved  their 
children  too  wisely  to  accustom  them  to  self-indulgence. 
Before  them  was  a  life  of  trial  and  hardship,  perhaps  a 
martyr's  death.  They  were  educated  from  childhood  to 
endure  hardness,  to  submit  to  control,  and  yet  to  think  and 
act  for  themselves.  Very  early  they  were  taught  to  bear 
responsibilities,  to  be  guarded  in  speech,  and  to  understand 
the  wisdom  of  silence.  One  indiscreet  word  let  fall  in  the 
hearing  of  their  enemies,  might  imperil  not  only  the  life  of 
the  speaker,  but  the  lives  of  hundreds  of  his  brethren ;  for 
as  wolves  hunting  their  prey  did  the  enemies  of  truth  pursue 
those  who  dared  to  claim  freedom  of  religious  faith. 

The  Waldenses  had  sacrificed  their  worldly  prosperity 
for  the  truth's  sake,  and  with  persevering- patience  they  toiled 
for  their  bread.  Every  spot  of  tillable  land  among  the 
mountains  was  carefully  improved;  the  valleys  and  the  less 
fertile  hillsides  were  made  to  yield  their  increase.  Economy 
and  severe  self-denial  formed  a  part  of  the  education  which 
the  children  received  as  their  only  legacy.  They  were  taught 
that  God  designs  life  to  be  a  discipline,  and  that  their  wants 
could  be  supplied  only  by  personal  labor,  by  forethought, 
care,  and  faith.  The  process  was  laborious  and  wearisome, 
but  it  was  wholesome,  just  what  man  needs  in  his  fallen 
state,  the  school  which  God  has  provided  for  his  training 
and  development. 

While  the  youth  were  inured  to  toil  and  hardship,,  the 
culture  of  the  intellect  was  not  neglected.  They  were  taught 
that  all  their  powers  belonged  to  God,  and  that  all  were  to 
be  improved  and  developed  for  his  service. 


68  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  Vaudois  churches,  in  their  purity  and  simplicity, 
resembled  the  church  of  apostolic  times.  Rejecting  the 
supremacy  of  pope  and  prelate,  they  held  the  Bible  as 
the  only  supreme,  infallible  authority.  Their  pastors,  un- 
like the  lordly  priests  of  Rome,  followed  the  example  of 
their  Master,  who  "  came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to 
minister."  They  fed  the  flock  of  God,  leading  them  to  the 
green  pastures  and  living  fountains  of  his  holy  Word.  Far 
from  the  monuments  of  human  pomp  and  pride,  the  people 
assembled,  not  in  magnificent  churches  or  grand  cathedrals, 
but  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  mountains,  in  the  Alpine 
valleys,  or,  in  time  of  danger,  in  some  rocky  stronghold,  to 
listen  to  the  words  of  truth  from  the  servants  of  Christ.  The 
pastors  not  only  preached  the  gospel,  but  they  visited  the 
sick,  catechized  the  children,  admonished  the  erring,  and 
labored  to  settle  disputes  and  promote  harmony  and  broth- 
erly love.  In  times  of  peace  they  were  sustained  by  the  free- 
will offerings  of  the  people;  but,  like  Paul  the  tent-maker, 
each  learned  some  trade  or  profession  by  which,  if  necessary, 
to  provide  for  his  own  support. 

From  their  pastors  the  youth  received  instruction.  AYhile 
attention  was  given  to  branches  of  general  learning,  the 
Bible  was  made  the  chief  study.  The  Gospels  of  Matthew 
and  John  they  committed  to  memory,  with  many  of  the  Epis- 
tles. They  were  employed  also  in  copying  the  Scriptures. 
Some  manuscripts  contained  tl'ie  whole  Bible,  others  only 
brief  selections,  to  wh  e  h  some  simple  explanations  of  the 
text  were  added  by  those  who  were  able  to  expound  the 
Scriptures.  Thus  were  brought  forth  the  treasures  of  truth 
so  long  concealed  by  those  who  sought  to  exalt  themselves 
above  God. , 

By  patient,  untiring  labor,  sometimes  in  the  deep,  dark 
caverns  of  the  earth,  by  the  light  of  torches,  the  sacred 
Scriptures  \v:-re  written  out,  verse  by  verse,  chapter  by 
chapter.  Thus  the  work  went  on,  the  revealed  will  c.'/  (lod 
shining  out  like  pure  #>ld;  how  mueh  brighter,  clearer, 


THE  WALDENSES.  69 


and  more  powerful  because  of  the  trials  undergone  for  its 
sake,  only  those  could  realize  who  were  engaged  in  the  work. 
Angels  from  Heaven  surrounded  these  faithful  workers. 

Satan  had  urged  on  the  papal  priests  and  prelates  to 
bury  the  Word  of  truth  beneath  the  rubbish  of  error,  heresy, 
and  superstition;  but  in  a  most  wonderful  manner  it  was 
preserved  uncorrupted  through  all  the  ages  of  darkness. 
It  bore  not  the  stamp  of  man,  but  the  impress  of  God. 
Men  have  been  unwearied  in  their  efforts  to  obscure  the 
plain,  simple  meaning  of  the  Scriptures,  and  to  make  them 
contradict  their  own  testimony ;  but,  like  the  ark  upon  the 
billowy  deep,  the  Word  of  God  outrides  the  storms  that 
threaten  it  with  destruction.  As  tho  mine  has  rich  veins 
of  gold  and  silver  hidden  beneath  the  surface,  so  that  all 
must  dig  who  would  discover  its  precious  stores,  so  the  Holy 
Scriptures  have  treasures  of  truth  that  are  revealed  only  to 
the  earnest,  humble,  prayerful  seeker.  God  designed  the 
Bible  to  be  a  lesson-book  to  all  mankind,  in  childhood, 
youth,  and  manhood,  and  to  be  studied  through  all  time. 
He  gave  his  Word  to  men  as  a  revelation  of  himself.  Every 
new  truth  discerned  is  a  fresh  disclosure  of  the  character  of 
its  Author.  The  study  of  the,  Scriptures  is  the  means  di- 
vinely ordained  to  bring  men  into  closer  connection  with 
their  Creator,  and  to  give  them  a  clearer  knowledge  of  his 
will.  It  is  the  medium  of  communication  between  God  and 
man. 

While  the  Waldenses  regarded  the  fear  of  the  Lord  as  the 
beginning  of  wisdom,  they  were  not  blind  to  the  importance 
of  a  contact  with  the  world,  a  knowledge  of  men  and  of 
active  life,  in  expanding  the  mind  and  quickening  the  per- 
ceptions. From  their  schools  in  the  mountains  some  of  the 
youth  were  sent  to  institutions  of  learning  in  the  cities  of 
France  or  Italy,  where  was  a  more  extended  field  for  study, 
thought,  and  observation  than  in  their  native  Alps.  The 
youth  thus  sent  forth  were  exposed  to  temptation,  they  wit- 
nessed vice,  they  encountered  Satan's  wily  agents,  who  urged 


70  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


upon  them  the  most  subtle  heresies  and  the  most  dangerous 
deceptions.  But  their  education  from  childhood  had  been 
of  a  character  to  prepare  them  for  all  this. 

In  the  schools  whither  they  went,  they  were  not  to  make 
confidants  of  any.  Their  garments  were  so  prepared  as  to 
conceal  their  greatest  treasure, — the  precious  manuscripts 
of  the  Scriptures.  These,  the  fruit  of  months  and  years  of 
toil,  they  carried  with  them,  and,  whenever  they  could  do 
so  without  exciting  suspicion,  they  cautiously  placed  some 
portion  in  the  way  of  those  whose  hearts  seemed  open  to 
receive  the  truth.  From  their  mother's  knee  the  Walden- 
sian  youth  had  been  trained  with  this  purpose  in  view;  they 
understood  their  work,  and  faithfully  performed  it.  Con- 
verts to  the  true  faith  were  won  in  these  institutions  of 
learning,  and  frequently  its  principles  were  found  to  be 
permeating  the  entire  school;  yet  the  papist  leaders  could 
not,  by  the  closest  inquiry,  trace  the  so-called  corrupting 
heresy  to  its  source. 

The  spirit  of  Christ  is  a  missionary  spirit.  The  very  first 
impulse  of  the  renewed  heart  is  to  bring  others  also  to  the 
Saviour.  Such  was  the  spirit  of  the  Vaudois  Christians. 
They  felt  that  God  required  more  of  them  than  merely  to 
preserve  the  truth  in  its  purity  in  their  own  churches;  that 
a  solemn  responsibility  rested  upon  them  to  let  their  light 
shine  forth  to  those  who  were  in  darkness;  by  the  mighty 
power  of  God's  Word  they  sought  to  break  the  bondage 
which  Rome  had  imposed.  The  Vaudois  ministers  were 
trained  as  missionaries,  every  one  who  expected  to  enter  the 
ministry  being  required  first  to  gain  an .  experience  as  an 
evangelist.  Eacli  wsis  to  serve  three  years  in  some  mission 
field  before  taking  charge  of  a  church  at  home.  This  serv- 
ice, requiring  at  the  outset  self-denial  and  sacrifice,  was  a 
fitting  introduction  to  the  pastor's  life  in  those  times  that 
tried  men's  souls.  The  youth  who  received  ordination  to 
the  sacred  office  sa\v  b<»foro  them,  not  the  prospect  of  earthly 
wealth  and  glory,  but  a  1  i  fo  of  toil  and  danger,  and  possibly 


THE  WALDENSES.  71 


a  martyr's  fate.  The  missionaries  went  out  two  and  two,  as 
Jesus  sent  forth  his  disciples.  With  every  young  man  was 
usually  associated  a  man  of  age  and  experience,  the  youth 
being  under  the  guidance  of  his  companion,  who  was  held 
responsible  for  his  training,  and  whose  instruction  he  was 
required  to  heed.  These  co-laborers  were  not  always  to- 
gether, but  often  met  for  prayer  and  counsel,  thus  strength- 
ening each  other  in  the  faith. 

To  have  made  known  the  object  of  their  mission  would 
have  insured  its  defeat;  therefore  they  carefully  concealed 
their  real  character.  Every  minister  possessed  a  knowledge 
of  some  trade  or  profession,  and  the  missionaries  prosecuted 
their  work  under  cover  of  a  secular  calling.  Usually  they 
chose  that  of  merchant  or  peddler.  They  dealt  in  choice  and 
costly  articles,  such  as  silks,  laces,  and  jewels,  which  in 
those  times  could  not  be  readily  procured,  and  thus  they 
found  entrance  where  they  would  otherwise  have  been  re- 
pulsed. All  the  while  their  hearts  were  uplifted  to  God  for 
wisdom  to  present  a  treasure  more  precious  than  gold  or 
gems.  They  secretly  carried  about  with  them  copies  of  the 
Bible,  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  whenever  an  opportunity 
was  presented,  they  called  the  attention  of  their  customers 
to  these  manuscripts.  Often  an  interest  to  read  God's  Word 
was  thus  awakened,  and  some  portion  was  gladly  left  with 
those  who  desired  to  receive  it. 

The  work  of  these  missionaries  began  in  the  plains  and 
valleys  at  the  foot  of  their  own  mountains,  but  it  extended 
far  beyond  these  limits.  With  naked  feet  and  in  garments 
coarse  arid  travel-stained  as  were  those  of  their  Master,  they 
passed  through  great  cities,  and  penetrated  to  distant  lands. 
Everywhere  they  scattered  the  precious  seed.  Churches 
sprung  up  in  their  path,  and  the  blood  of  martyrs  wit- 
nessed for  the  truth.  The  day  of  God  will  reveal  a  rich  har- 
vest of  souls  garnered  by  the  labors  of  these  faithful  men. 
Veiled  and  silent,  the  Word  of  (lod  was  making  its  way 
through  Christendom,  and  meeting  a  glad  reception  in  the 
homes  and  hearts  of  men. 


72  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

To  the  Waldenses  the  Scriptures  were  not  merely  a  record 
of  God's  dealings  with  men  in  the  past,  and  a  revelation  of 
the  responsibilities  and  duties  of  the  present,  but  an  unfold- 
ing of  the  perils  and  glories  of  the  future.  They  believed 
that  the  end  of  all  things  was  not  far  distant;  and  as  they 
studied  the  Bible  with  prayer  and  tears,  they  were  the  more 
deeply  impressed  with  its  precious  utterances,  and  with  their 
duty  to  make  known  to  others  its  saving  truths.  They  saw 
the  plan  of  salvation  clearly  revealed  in  the  sacred  pages, 
and  they  found  comfort,  hope,  and  peace  in  believing  in 
Jesus.  As  the  light  illuminated  their  understanding  and 
made  glad  their  hearts,  they  longed  to  shed  its  beams  upon 
those  who  were  in  the  darkness  of  papal  error. 

They  saw  that  under  the  guidance  of  pope  and  priests, 
multitudes  were  vainly  endeavoring  to  obtain  pardon  by 
afflicting  their  bodies  for  the  sin  of  their*  souls.  Taught  to 
trust  to  their  good  works  to  save  them,  they  were  ever  look- 
ing to  themselves,  their  minds  dwelling  upon  their  sinful 
condition,  seeing  themselves  exposed  to  the  wrath  of  Clod, 
afflicting  soul  and  body,  yet  finding  no  relief.  Thus  con- 
scientious souls  were  bound  by  the  doctrines  of  Rome. 
Thousands  abandoned  friends  and  kindred,  and  spent  their 
lives  in  convent  cells.  By  oft-repeated  fasts  and  cruel  scourg- 
ings,  by  midnight  vigils,  by  prostration  for  weary  hours 
upon  the  cold,  damp  stones  of  their  dreary  abode,  by  long 
pilgrimages,  by  humiliating  penance  and  fearful  torture, 
thousands  vainly  sought  to  obtain  peace  of  conscience.  Op- 
pressed with  a  sense  of  sin,  and  haunted  with  the  fear  of 
God's  avenging  wrath,  many  suffered  on,  until  exhausted 
nature  gave  way,  and  without  one  ray  of  light  or  hope,  they 
sank  into  the  tomb. 

The  Waldenses  longed  to  break  to  these  starving  souls 
the  bread  of  life,  to  open  to  them  the  messages  of  peace  in 
the  promises  of  God,  and  to  point  them  to  Christ  as  their 
o;ily  hope  of  salvation.  The  doctrine  that  good  works  can 
atone  for  the  transgression  of  God's  law,  they  held  to  be 


THE  WALDENSES.  73 


based  upon  falsehood.  Reliance  upon  human  merit  inter- 
cepts the  view  of  Christ's  infinite  love.  Jesus  died  as  a  sac- 
rifice for  man  because  the  fallen  race  can  do  nothing  to 
recommend  themselves  to  God.  The  merits  of  a  crucified 
and  risen  Saviour  are  the  foundation  of  the  Christian's  faith. 
The  dependence  of  the  soul  upon  Christ  is  as  real,  and  its 
connection  with  him  must  be  as  close,  as  that  of  a  limb  to 
the  body,  or  of  a  branch  to  the  vine.  , 

The  teachings  of  popes  and  priests  had  led  men  to  look 
upon  the  character  of  God,  and  even  of  Christ,  as  stern, 
gloomy,  and  forbidding.  The  Saviour  was  represented  as 
so  far  devoid  of  all  sympathy  with  man  in  his  fallen  state 
that  the  mediation  of  priests  and  saints  must  be  invoked. 
Those  whose  minds  had  been  enlightened  by  the  Word  of 
God  longed  to  point  these  souls  to  Jesus  as  their  compas- 
sionate, loving  Saviour,  standing  with  outstretched  arms 
inviting  all  to  come  to  him  with  their  burden  of  sin,  their 
care  and  weariness.  They  longed  to  clear  away  the  ob- 
structions which  Satan  had  piled  up  that  men  might  not  see 
the  promises,  and  come  directly  to  God,  confessing  thei. 
sins,  and  obtaining  pardon  and  peace. 

Eagerly  did  the  Vaudois  missionary  unfold  to  the  in- 
quiring mind  the  precious  truths  of  the  gospel.  Cautiously 
he  produced  the  carefully  written  portions  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures.  It  was  his  greatest  joy  to  give  hope  to  the  con- 
scientious, sin-stricken  soul,  who  could  see  only  a  God  of 
vengeance,  waiting  to  execute  justice.  With  quivering  lip 
and  tearful  eye  did  he,  often  on  bended  knees,  open  to  his 
brethren  the  precious  promises  that  reveal  the  sinner's  only 
hope.  Thus  the  light  of  truth  penetrated  many  a  darkened 
mind,  rolling  back  the  cloud  of  gloom,  until  the  Sun  of 
Righteousness  shone  into  the  heart  with  healing  in  his 
beams.  It  was  often  the  case  that  some  portion  of  Scripture 
was  read  again  and  again,  the  hearer  desiring  it  to  be  re- 
peated, as  if  he  would  assure  himself  that  he  had  heard 
aright.  Especially  was  the  repetition  of  these  words  eagerly 


74  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


desired:  "The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleanseth  us 
from  all  sin." l  "As  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wil- 
derness, even  so  must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up,  that  who- 
soever believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal 
life."2 

Many  were  undeceived  in  regard  to  the  claims  of  Rome. 
They  saw  how  vain  is  the  mediation  of  men  or  angels  in 
behalf  of  the  sinner.  As  the  true  light  dawned  upon  their 
minds,  they  exclaimed  with  rejoicing,  "Christ  is  my  priest; 
his  blood  is  my  sacrifice;  his  altar  is  my  confessional." 
They  cast  themselves  wholly  upon  the  merits  of  Jesus,  re- 
peating the  words,  "  Without  faith  it  is  impossible  to  please 
him."3  "There  is  none  other  name  under  heaven  given 
among  men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved."  * 

The  assurance  of  a  Saviour's  love  seemed  too  mucli  for 
some  of  these  poor  tempest-tossed  souls  to  realize.  So  great 
was  the  relief  which  it  brought,  such  a  flood  of  light  was 
shed  upon  them,  that  they  seemed  transported  to  Heaven. 
Their  hand  was  laid  confidingly  in  the  hand  of  Christ;  their 
feet  were  planted  upon  the  Rock  of  Ages.  All  fear  of  deatli 
was  banished.  They  could  now  covet  the  prison  and  the 
fagot  if  they  might  thereby  honor  the  name  of  their  Re- 
deemer. 

In  secret  places  the  "Word  of  God  was  thus  1) rough t  forth 
and  read,  sometimes  to  a  single  soul,  sometimes  to  a  little 
company  who  were  longing  for  light  and  truth.  Often  the 
entire  night  was  spent  in  this  manner.  So  great  would  be 
the  wonder  and  admiration  of  the  listeners  that  the  mes- 
senger of  mercy  was  not,  infrequently  compelled  to  cease  his 
reading  until  the  understanding  could  grasp  the  tidings  of 
salvation.  Often  would  words  like;  these  be  uttered:  "Will 
God  indeed  accept  my  offering?  Will  he  smile  upon  mef 
Will  he  pardon  me?"  The  answer  was  read,  " Come  unto 
me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  niv  heavy-laden,  and  I  will 


rest," 


1 1  John  1  :  7.  'John  3  :  14,  15.  3  Heb.  11:6. 

*  Acts  4: 12.  6Matt  11  :28. 


THE  WALDENSES.  75 

Faith  grasped  the  promise,  and  the  glad  response  \vas 
heard,  "  No  more  long  pilgrimages  to  make ;  no  more  pain- 
ful journeys  to  holy  shrines.  I  may  come  to  Jesus  just  as  I 
am,  sinful  and  unholy,  and  he  will  not  spurn  the  penitential 
prayer.  'Thy  sins  be  forgiven  thee.'  Mine,  even  mine,  may 
be  forgiven ! " 

A  tide  of  sacred  joy  would  fill  the  heart,  and  the  name 
of  Jesus  would  be  magnified  by  praise  and  thanksgiving. 
Those  happy  souls  returned  to  their  homes  to  diffuse  light, 
to  repeat  to  others,  as  well  as  they  could,  their  new  experi- 
ence; that  they  had  found  the  true  and  living  Way.  There 
was  a  strange  and  solemn  power  in  the  words  of  Scripture 
that  spoke  directly  to  the  hearts  of  those  who  were  longing 
for  the  truth.  It  was  the  voice  of  God,  and  it  carried  con- 
viction to  those  who  heard. 

The  messenger  of  truth  went  on  his  way;  but  his  appear- 
ance of  humility,  his  sincerity,  his  earnestness  and  deep 
fervor,  were  subjects  of  frequent  remark.  In  many  instances 
his  hearers  had  not  asked  him  whence  he  came,  or  whither 
he  went.  They  had  been  so  overwhelmed,  at  first  with  sur- 
prise, and  afterward  with  gratitude  and  joy,  that  they  had 
not  thought  to  question  him.  When  they  had  urged  him 
to  accompany  them  to  their  homes,  he  had  replied  that  he 
must  visit  the  lost  sheep  of  the  flock.  Could  he  have  been 
an  angel  from  Heaven?  they  queried. 

In  many  cases  the  messenger  of  truth  was  seen  no  more. 
He  had  made  his  way  to  other  lands,  he  was  wearing  out 
his  life  in  some  unknown  dungeon,  or  perhaps  his  bones 
wore  whitening  on  the  spot  where  he  had  witnessed  for  the 
truth.  But  the  words  lie  had  left  behind  could  not  be  de- 
stroyed. They  were  doing  their  work  in  the  hearts  of  men; 
the  blessed  results  will  be  fully  known  only  in  the  Judgment. 

The  Waldensian  missionaries  were  invading  the  kingdom 
of  Satan,  and  the  powers  of  darkness  aroused  to  greater  vigi- 
lance. Every  effort  to  advance  the  truth  was  watched  by 
the  prince  of  evil,  and  he  excited  the  fears  of  his  'agents. 


76  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  papal  leaders  saw  a  portent  of  danger  to  their  cause 
from  the  labors  of  these  humble  itinerants.  If  the  light  of 
truth  were  allowed  to  shine  unobstructed,  it  would  sweep 
away  the  heavy  clouds  of  error  that  enveloped  the  people;  it 
would  direct  the  minds  of  men  to  God  alone,  and  would 
eventually  destroy  the  supremacy  of  Rome. 

The  very  existence  of  this  peonle,  holding  the  faith  of  the 
ancient  church,  was  a  constant  testimony  to  Rome's  apostasy, 
and  therefore  excited  the  most  bitter  hatred  and  persecution. 
Their  refusal  to  surrender  the  Scriptures  was  also  an  offense 
that  Rome  could  not  tolerate.  She  determined  to  blot  them 
from  the  earth.  Now  began  the  most  terrible  crusades 
against  God's  people  in  their  mountain  homes.  Inquisitors 
were  put  upon  their  track,  and  the  scene  of  innocent  Abel 
falling  before  the  murderous  Cain  was  often  repeated. 

Again  and  again  were  their  fertile  lands  laid  waste,  their 
dwellings  and  chapels  swept  away,  so  that  where  once  were 
flourishing  fields  and  the  homes  of  an  innocent,  industrious 
people,  there  remained  only  a  desert.  As  the  ravenous  beast 
is  rendered  more  furious  by  the  taste  of  blood,  so  the  rage  of 
the  papists  was  kindled  to  greater  intensity  by  the  sufferings 
of  their  victims.  Many  of  these  witnesses  for  a  pure  faith 
were  pursued  across  the  mountains,  and  hunted  down  in  the 
valleys  where  they  were  hidden,  shut  in  by  mighty  forests, 
and  pinnacles  of  rock. 

No  charge  could  be  brought  against  the  moral  character 
of  this  proscribed  class.  Even  their  enemies  declared  them 
to  be  a  peaceable,  quiet,  pious  people.  Their  grand  offense 
was  that  they  would  not  worship  God  according  to  the  AVI  11 
of  the  pope.  For  this  crime,  every  humiliation,  insult,  and 
torture  that  men  or  devils  could  invent  was  heaped  upon 
them. 

When  Rome  at  one  time  determined  to  exterminate  the 
hated  sect,  a  bull  was  issued  by  the  pope l  condemning  them 
as  heretics,  and  delivering  them  to  slaughter.  They  were 

1  Innocent  VIII.,  A.  D.  1487. 


TTIE  WALDENSES.  77 


not  accused  as  idlers,  or  dishonest,  or  disorderty;  but  it  was 
declared  that  they  had  an  appearance  of  piety  and  sanctity 
that  seduced  "the  sheep  of  the  true  fold."  Therefore  the 
pope  ordered  "that  the  malicious  and  abominable  sect  of 
malignants,"  if  they  refuse  to  abjure,  "be  crushed  like  ven- 
omous snakes."  Did  this  haughty  potentate  expect  to  meet 
those  words  again?  Did  he  know  that  they  were  registered 
in  the  books  of  Heaven,  to  confront  him  at  the  Judgment? 
"  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these 
my  brethren,"  said  Jesus,  "ye -have  done  it  unto  me."1 

This  bull  called  upon  all  members  of  the  church  to  join 
the  crusade  against  th£  heretics.  As  an  incentive  to  engage 
in  this  cruel  work,  it  "absolved  from  all  ecclesiastical  pains 
and  penalties,  general  and  particular;  it  released  all  who 
joined  the  crusade  from  any  oaths  they  might  have  taken; 
it  legitimatized  their  title  to  any  property  which  they  might 
have  illegally  acquired,  and  promised  remission  of  all  their 
sins  to  such  as  should  kill  any  heretic.  It  annulled  all  con- 
tracts made  in  favor  of  the  Vaudois,  ordered  their  domestics 
to  abandon  them,  forbade  all  persons  to  give  them  any  aid 
whatever,  and  empowered  all  persons  to  take  possession  of 
their  property."  This  document  clearly  reveals  the  master- 
spirit behind  the  scenes.  It  is  the  roar  of  the  dragon,  and 
not  the  voice  of  Christ,  that  is  heard  therein. 

The  papal  leaders  would  not  conform  their  characters  to 
the  great  stancfard  of  God's  law,  but  erected  a  standard  to 
suit  themselves,  and  determined  to  compel  all  to  conform  to 
this  because  Rome  willed  it.  The  most  horrible  tragedies 
were  enacted.  Corrupt  and  blasphemous  priests  and  popes 
were  doing  the  work  which  Satan  appointed  them.  Mercy 
had  no  place  in  their  natures.  The  same  spirit  that  crucified 
Christ,  and  that  slew  the  apostles,  the  same  that  moved  the 
blood-thirsty  Nero  against  the  faithful  in  his  day,  was  at 
work  to  rid  the  earth  of  those  who  were  beloved  of  God. 

The   persecutions  visited   for  many  centuries  upon   this 

i  Matt.  25  : 40. 


78 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


God-fearing  people  were  endured  by  them  with  a  patience 
and  constancy  that  honored  their  Redeemer.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  crusades  against  them,  and  the  inhuman  butchery 
to  which  they  were  subjected,  they  continued  to  send  out 
their  missionaries  to  scatter  the  precious  truth.  They  were 
hunted  to  the  death;  yet  their  blood  watered  the  seed  sown, 
and  it  failed  not  of  yielding  fruit.  Thus  the  Waldenses 
witnessed  for  God,  centuries  before  the  birth  of  Luther. 
Scattered  over  many  lands,  they  planted  the  seeds  of  the 
Reformation  that  began  in  the  time  of  Wyclifte,  grew  broad 
and  deep  in  the  days  of  Luther,  and  is  to  be  carried  forward 
to  the  close  of  time  by  those  who  alsp  are  willing  to  suffer 
all  things  for  "  the  Word  of  God,  and  for  the  testimony  of 
Jesus  Christ."1 

1  Rev.  1  :  9. 


PASS  OF  P*tA  DEL  TOE  IN  WALDRNSIAN  VALLEYS. 


Eugraved  Expressly  ior  Ureat  Controversy. 

Huss. 


\V  V(  I.IKI-K. 


JEROME. 

(KroLAMl'AIMUS. 


CHAPTER  V. 


JOHN  WYCLIFFB. 

BEFORE  the  Reformation,  there  were  at  times  but  very 
few  copies  of  the  Bible  in  existence;  but  God  had  not  suf- 
fered his  Word  to  be  wholly  destroyed.  Its 'truths  were  not 
to  be  forever  hidden.  He  could  as  easily  unchain  the  words 
of  life  as  he  could  open  prison  doors  and  unbolt  iron  gates  to 
set  his  servants  free.  In  the  different  countries  of  Europe, 
men  were  moved  by  the  Spirit  of  God  to  search  for  the  truth 
as  for  hid  treasures.  Providentially  guided  to  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  they  studied  the  sacred  pages  with  intense  inter- 
est. They^  were  willing  to  accept  the  light,  at  any  cost  to 
themselves.  Though  they  did  not  see  all  things  clearly, 
they  were  enabled  to  perceive  many  long-buried  truths.  As 
heaven-sent  messengers  they  went  forth,  rending  asunder 
the  chains  of  error  and  superstition,  and  calling  upon  those 
who  had  been  so  long  enslaved  to  arise  and  assert  their 
liberty. 

Except  among  the  Waldenses,  the  Word  of  God  had  for 
ages  been  locked  up  in  languages  known  only  to  the  learned; 
but  the  time  had  come  for  the  Scriptures  to  be  translated, 
and  given  to  the  people  of  different  lands  in  their  native 
tongue.  The  world  had  passed  its  midnight.  The  hours  of 
darkness  were  wearing  away,  and  in  many  lands  appeared 
tokens  of  the  coming  dawn. 

In  the  fourteenth  century  arose  in  England  the  "  morning- 
star  of  the  Reformation."  John  Wycliffe  was  the  herald  of 
reform,  not.for  England  alone,  but  for  all  Christendom.  The 
great  protest  against  Rome  which  it  was  permitted  him  to 
utter,  was  never  to  be  silenced.  That  protest  opened  the 

(79) 


80  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

struggle  which  was  to  result  in  the  emancipation  of  individ- 
uals, of  churches,  and  of  nations. 

Wycliffe  received  a  liberal  education,  and  with  him  the 
fear  of  the  Lord  was  the  beginning  of  wisdom.  He  was 
noted  at  college  for  his  fervent  piety  as  well  as  for  his  re- 
markable talents  and  sound  scholarship.  In  his  thirst  for 
knowledge  he  sought  to  become  acquainted  with  every 
branch  of  learning.  He  was  educated  in  the  scholastic 
philosophy,  in  the  canons  of  the  church,  and  in  the  civil  law, 
especially  that  of  his  own  country.  In  his  after-labors  the 
value  of  this  early  training  was  apparent.  A  thorough 
acquaintance  with  the  speculative  philosophy  of  his  time 
enabled  him  to  expose  its  errors;  and  by  his  study  of  na- 
tional and  ecclesiastical  law  he  was  prepared  to  engage  in 
the  great  struggle  for  civil  and  religious  liberty.  While  he 
could  wield  the  weapons  drawn  from  the  Word  of  God,  he 
had  acquired  the  intellectual  discipline  of  the  schools,  and 
he  understood  the  tactics  of  the  schoolmen.  Tbe  power  of 
his  genius  and  the  extent  and  thoroughness  of  his  knowl- 
edge commanded  the  respect  of  both  friends  and  foes.  His 
adherents  saw  with  satisfaction  that  their  champion  stood 
foremost  among  the  leading  minds  of  the  nation ;  and  his 
enemies  were  prevented  from  casting  contempt  upon  the 
cause  of  reform  by  exposing  the  ignorance  or  weakness  of 
its  supporter. 

While  WyclifFe  was  still  at  college,  he  entered  upon  the 
study  of  the  Scriptures.  In  those  early  times,  when  tin- 
Bible  existed  only  in  the  ancient  languages,  scholars  were 
enabled  to  find  their  way  to  the  fountain  of  truth,  which  was 
closed  to  the  uneducated  classes.  Thus  already  the  way  had 
been  prepared  for  Wycliffe's  future  work  as  a  reformer.  Men 
of  learning  had  studied  the  Word  of  God,  and  had  found 
the  great  truth  of  his  free  grace  there  revealed.  In  their 
teachings  they  had  spread  a  knowledge  of  this  truth,  and 
had  led  others  to  turn  to  the  Living  Oracles. 

When  Wycliffe's  attention  was  directed  to  the  Scriptures, 


JOHN   WYCL1FFE.  81 

he  entered  upon  their  investigation  with  the  same  thorough- 
ness which  had  enabled  him  to  master  the  learning  of  the 
schools.  Heretofore  he  had  felt  a  great  want,  which  neither 
his  scholastic  studies  nor  the  teaching  of  the  church  could 
satisfy.  In  the  Word  of  God  he  found  that  which  he  had 
before  sought  in  vain.  Here  he  saw  the  plan  of  salvation 
revealed,  and  Christ  set  forth  as  the  only  advocate  for  man. 
He  gave  himself  to  the  service  of  Christ,  and  determined  to 
proclaim  the  truths  he  had  discovered. 

Like  after-reformers,  Wycliffe  did  not,  at  the  opening  of 
his  work,  foresee  whither  it  would  lead  him.  He  did  not 
set  himself  deliberately  in  opposition  to  Rome.  But  devo- 
tion to  truth  could  not  but  bring  him  in  conflict  with  false- 
hood. The  more  clearly  he  discerned  the  errors  of  the 
papacy,  the  more  earnestly  he  presented  the  teaching  of  the 
Bible.  He  saw  that  Rome  had  forsaken  the  Word  of  God 
for  human  tradition ;  he  fearlessly  accused  the  priesthood  of 
having  banished  the  Scriptures,  and  demanded  that  the 
Bible  be  restored  to  the  people,  and  that  its  authority  be 
again  established  in  the  church.  He  was  an  able  and  ear- 
nest teacher,  and  an  eloquent  preacher,  and  his  daily  life 
was  a  demonstration  of  the  truths  he  preached.  His  knowl- 
edge of  the  Scriptures,  the  force  of  his  reasoning,  the  purity 
of  his  life,  and  his  unbending  courage  and  integrity,  won  for 
him  general  esteem  and  confidence.  Many  of  the  people 
had  become  dissatisfied  with  their  former  faith,  as  they 
saw  the  iniquity  that  prevailed  in  the  Roman  Church,  and 
they  hailed  with  unconcealed  joy  the  truths  brought  to  view 
by  Wycliffe;  but  the  papist  leaders  were  filled  with  rage 
when  they  perceived  that  this  reformer  was  gaining  an  in- 
fluence greater  than  their  own. 

Wycliffe  was  a  keen  detector  of  error,  and  he  struck  fear- 
lessly against  many  of  the  abuses  sanctioned  by  the  authority 
of  Rome.  While  acting  as  chaplain  for  the  king,  he  took  a 
bold  stand  against  the  payment  of  tribute  claimed  by  the 
pope  from  the  English  monarch,  and  showed  that  the  papal 


82 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVLESY. 


assumption  of  authority  over  secular  rulers  was  contrary  to 
both  reason  and  revelation.  The  demands  of  the  pope  had 
excited  great  indignation,  and  Wycliffe's  teachings  exerted 
an  influence  upon  the  leading  minds  of  the  nation.  The 
king  and  the  nobles  united  in  denying  the  pontiff's  claim  to 
temporal  authority,  and  in  refusing  the  payment  of  the 
tribute.  Thus  an  effectual  blow  was  struck  against  the 
papal  supremacy  in  England. 

Another  evil  against  which  the  reformer  waged  long  and 
resolute  battle,  was  the  institution  of  the  orders  of  mendicant 
friars.  These  friars  swarmed  in  England,  casting  a  blight 
upon  the  greatness  and  prosperity  of  the  nation.  Industry, 
education,  morals,  all  felt  the  withering  influence.  The 
monks'  life  of  idleness  and  beggary  was  not  only  a  heavy 
drain  upon  the  resources  of  the  people,  but  it  brought  useful 
labor  into  contempt.  The  youth  were  demoralized  and  cor- 
rupted. By  the  influence  of  the  friars  many  were  induced 
to  enter  a  cloister  and  devote  themselves  to  a  monastic  life, 
and  this  not  only  without  the  consent  of  their  parents,  but 
even  without  their  knowledge,  and  contrary  to  their  com- 
mands. One  of  the  early  fathers  of  the  Romish  Church, 
urging  the  claims  of  monasticism  above  the  obligations  of 
filial  love  and  duty,  had  declared:  "Though  thy  father 
should  lie  before  thy  door,  weeping  and  lamenting,  and  thy 
mother  should  show  thee  the  body  that  bare  thee  and  the 
breasts  that  nursed  thee,  see  that  thou  trample  them  under 
foot,  and  go  onward  straightway  to  Christ."  "  By  this  mon- 
strous inhumanity,"  as  Luther  afterward  styled  it,  "savor- 
ing more  of  the  wolf  and  the  tyrant  than  of  the  Christian 
and  the  man,"  were  the  hearts  of  children  steeled  against 
their  parents.  Thus  did  the  papal  leaders,  like  the  Phari- 
sees of  old,  make  the  commandment  of  God  of  none  effect  by 
their  tradition.  Thus  homes  were  inado  desolate,  and  par- 
ents were  deprived  of  the  society  of  their  sons  an  J  daughters. 

Even  the  students  in  the  universities  were  deceived  by 
the  false  representations  of  the  monks,  and  induced  to  join 


JOHN  WYCLIPFE. 


their  orders.  Many  afterward  repented  this  step,  seeing  that 
they  had  blighted  their  own  lives,  and  had  brought  sorrow 
upon  their  parents;  but  once  fast  in  the  snare,  it  was  impos- 
sible for  them  to  obtain  their  freedom.  Many  parents,  fear- 
ing the  influence  of  the  monks,  refused  to  send  their  sons  to 
the  universities.  There  was  a  manced  falling  off  in  the 
number  of  students  in  attendance  at  the  great  centers  of 
learning.  The  schools  languished,  and  ignorance  prevailed. 

The  pope  had  bestowed  on  these  monks  the  power  to  hear 
confessions  and  to  grant  pardon.  This  became  a  source  of 
great  evil.  Bent  on  enhancing  their  gains,  the  friars  were 
so  ready  to  grant  absolution  that  criminals  of  all  descriptions 
resorted  to  them,  and  as  a  result,  the  worst  vices  rapidly 
increased.  The  sick  and  the  poor  were  left  to  suffer,  while 
the  gifts  that  should  have  relieved  their  wants  went  to  the 
monks,  who  with  threats  demanded  the  alms  of  the  people, 
denouncing  the  impiety  of  those  who  should  withhold  gifts 
from  their  orders.  Notwithstanding  their  profession  of  pov- 
erty, the  wealth  of  the  friars  was  constantly  increasing,  and 
their  magnificent  edifices  and  luxurious  tables  made  more 
apparent  the  growing  poverty  of  the  nation.  And  while 
spending  their  time  in  luxury  and  pleasure,  they  sent  out  in 
their  stead  ignorant  men,  who  could  only  recount  marvelous 
tales,  legends,  and  jests  to  amuse  the  people,  and  make  them 
still  more  completely  the  dupes  of  the  monks.  Yet  the 
friars  continued  to  maintain  their  hold  on  the  superstitious 
multitudes,  and  led  them  to  believe  that  all  religious  duty 
was  comprised  in  acknowledging  the  supremacy  of  the  pope, 
adoring,  the  saints,  and  making  gifts  to  the  monks,  and 
that  this  was  sufficient  to  secure  them  a  place  in  Heaven. 

Men  of  learning  and  piety  had  labored  in  vain  to  bring 
about  a  reform  in  these  monastic  orders;  but  Wycliffe, 
with  clearer  insight,  struck  at  the  root  of  the  evil,  declaring 
that  the  system  itself  was  false,  and  that  it  should  be  abol- 
ished. Discussion  and  inquiry  were  awakening.  As  the 
monks  traversed  the  country,  vending  the  pope's  pardons, 


84  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

many  were  led  to  doubt  the  possibility  of  purchasing  for- 
giveness with  money,  and  they  questioned  whether  they 
should  not  seek  pardon  from  God  rather  than  from  the  pon- 
tiff of  Rome.  Not  a  few  were  alarmed  at  the  rapacity  of  the 
friars,  whose  greed  seemed  never  to  be  satisfied.  "  The  monks 
and  priests  of  Rome,"  said  they,  "  are  eating  us  away  like  a 
cancer.  God  must  deliver  us,  or  the  people  will  perish." 
To  cover  their  avarice,  these  begging  monks  claimed  that 
they  were  following  the  Saviour's  example,  declaring  that 
Jesus  and  his  disciples  had  been  supported  by  the  charities 
of  the  people.  This  claim  resulted  in  injury  to  their  cause, 
for  it  led  many  to  the  Bible  to  learn  the  truth  for  them- 
selves,— a  result  which  of  all  others  was  least  desired  by 
Rome.  The  minds  of  men  were  directed  to  the  Source  of 
truth,  which  it  was  her  object  to  conceal. 

Wycliffe  began  to  write  and  publish  tracts  against  the 
friars,  not,  however,  seeking  so  much  to  enter  into  dispute 
with  them  as  to  call  the  minds  of  the  people  to  the  teachings 
of  the  Bible  and  its  Author.  He  declared  that  the  power 
of  pardon  or  of  excommunication  is  possessed  by  the  pope  in 
no  greater  degree  than  by  common  priests,  and  that  no  man 
can  be  truly  excommunicated  unless  he  has  first  brought 
upon  himself  the  condemnation  of  God.  In  no  more  effect- 
ual way  could  he  have  undertaken  the  overthrow  of  that 
mammoth  fabric  of  spiritual  and  temporal  dominion  which 
the  pope  had  erected,  and  in  which  the  souls  and  bodies 
of  millions  were  held  captive. 

Again  Wycliffe  was  called  to  defend  the  rights  of  the  En- 
glish crown  against  the  encroachments  of  Rome ;  and  being 
appointed  a  royal  .ambassador,  he  spent  two  years  in  the 
Netherlands,  in  conference  with  the  commissioners  of  the 
pope.  Here  he  was  brought  into  communication  with  eccle- 
siastics from  France,  Italy,  and  Spain,  and  he  had  an  oppor- 
tunity to  look  behind  the  scenes,  and  gain  a  knowledge  of 
many  things  which  would  have  remained  hidden  from  him 
in  England.  He  learned  much  that  was  to  give  point  to 


JOHN  WYCLIFFE.  85 

his  after-labors.  In  these  representatives  from  the  papal 
court  he  read  the  true  character  and  aims  of  the  hierarchy. 
He  returned  to  England  to  repeat  his  former  teachings  more 
openly  and  with  greater  zeal,  declaring  that  covetousness, 
pride,  and  deception  were  the  gods  of  Rome. 

In  one  of  his  tracts  he  said,  speaking  of  the  pope  and 
his  collectors :  "  They  draw  out  of  our  land  poor  men's  live- 
lihood, and  many  thousand  marks  by  the  year,  of  the  king's 
money,  for  sacraments  and  spiritual  things,  that  is  cursed 
heresy  of  simony,  and  maketh  all  Christendom  assert  and 
maintain  his  heresy.  And  certes  though  our  realm  had  a  huge 
hill  of  gold,  and  never  other  man  took  thereof  but  only 
this  proud,  worldly  priest's  collector,  by  process  of  time  this 
hill  must  be  spended ;  for  he  taketh  ever  money  out  of  our 
land,  and  sendeth  naught  again  but  God's  curse  for  his 
simony." 

Soon  after  his  return  to  England,  Wycliife  received  from 
the  king  the  appointment  to  the  rectory  of  Lutterworth. 
This  was  an  assurance  that  the  monarch  at  least  had  not 
been  displeased  by  his  plain  speaking.  Wycliffe's  influence 
was  felt  in  shaping  the  action  of  the  court,  as  well  as  in 
moulding  the  belief  of  the  nation. 

The  papal  thunders  were  soon  hurled  against  him.  Three 
bulls  were  dispatched  to  England, — to  the  university,  to  the 
king,  and  to  the  prelates, — all  commanding  immediate  and 
decisive  measures  to  silence  the  teacher  of  heresy.  Before 
the  arrival  of  the  bulls,  however,  the  bishops,  in  their  zeal, 
had  summoned  Wycliffe  before  them  for  trial.  But  two  of 
the  most  powerful  princes  in  the  kingdom  accompanied 
him  to  the  tribunal ;  and  the  people,  surrounding  the  build- 
ing and  rushing  in,  so  intimidated  the  judges  that  the  pro- 
ceedings were  for  the  time  suspended,  and  he  was  allowed 
to  go  his  way  in  peace.  A  little  later,  Edward  III.,  whom 
in  his  old  age  the  prelates  were  seeking  to  influence  against 
the  reformer,  died,  and  Wycliffe's  former  protector  became 
regent  of  the  kingdom. 


86  THE  ORE  A  T  CONTROVERSY. 

But  the  arrival  of  the  papal  bulls  laid  upon  all  England  a 
peremptory  command  for  the  arrest  and  imprisonment  of  the 
heretic.  These  measures  pointed  directly  to  the  stake.  It 
appeared  certain  that  Wycliffe  must  soon  fall  a  prey  to  the 
vengeance  of  Rome.  But  He  who  declared  to  one  of  old, 
"Fear  not;  I  am  thy  shield,"1  again  stretched  out  his  hand  to 
protect  his  servant.  Death  came,  not  to  the  reformer,  but 
to  the  pontiff  who  had  decreed  his  destruction.  Gregory  XI. 
died,  and  the  ecclesiastics  who  had  assembled  for  WyclifFe's 
trial,  dispersed. 

God's  providence  still  further  overruled  events  to  give 
opportunity  for  the  growth  of  the  Reformation.  The  death 
of  Gregory  was  followed  by  the  election  of  two  rival  popes. 
Two  conflicting  powers,  each  professedly  infallible,  now 
claimed  obedience.  Each  called  upon  the  faithful  to  assist 
him  in  making  Avar  upon  the  other,  enforcing  his  demands 
by  terrible  anathemas  against  his  adversaries,  and  promises 
of  rewards  in  Heaven  to  his  supporters.  This  occurrence 
greatly  weakened  the  power  of  the  papacy.  The  rival 
factions  had  all  they  could  do  to  attack  each  other,  and 
Wycliffe  for  a  time  had  rest.  Anathemas  and  recrimina- 
tions were  flying  from  pope  to  pope,  and  torrents  of  blood  were 
poured  out  to  support  their  conflicting  claims.  Crimes  and 
scandals  flooded  the  church.  Meanwhile .  the  reformer,  in 
the  quiet  retirement  of  his  parish  of  Lutterworth,  was  labor- 
ing diligently  to  point  men  from  the  contending  popes  to 
Jesus,  the  Prince  of  peace. 

The  schism,  with  all  the  strife  and  corruption  which  it 
caused,  prepared  the  way  for  the  Reformation,  by  enabling 
the  people  to  see  what  the  papacy  really  wras.  In  a  tract 
which  he  published,  "On  the  Schism  of  the  Popes,"  Wyc- 
liffe called  upon  the  people  to  consider  whether  these  two 
priests  were  not  speaking  the  truth  in  condemning  each 
other  as  the  antichrist.  "The  fiend,"  said  ho,  "no  longer 
reigns  in  one  but  in  two  priests,  that  men  may  the  more 
easily,  in  Christ's  name,  overcome  them  both." 

lGen.  15:1. 


JOHN   WYCLIFFE.  87 


Wycliffe,  like  his  Master,  preached  the  gospel  to  the  poor. 
Not  content  with  spreading  the  light  in  their  humble  homes 
in  his  own  parish  of  Lutterworth,  he  determined  that  it 
should  be  carried  to  every  part  of  England.  To  accomplish 
this  he  organized  a  body  of  preachers,  simple,  devout  men, 
who  loved  the  truth  and  desired  nothing  so  much  as  to 
extend  it.  These  men  went  everywhere,  teaching  in  the 
market-places,  in  the  streets  of  the  great  cities,  and  in  the 
country  lanes.  They  sought  out  the  aged,  the  sick,  and  the 
poor,  and  opened  to  them  the  glad  tidings  of  the  grace  of 
God. 

As  a  professor  of  theology  at  Oxford,  WyclifTe  preached  the 
Word  of  God  in  the  halls  of  the  university.  So  faithfully  did 
he  present  the  truth  to  the  students  under  his  instruction, 
that  he  received  the  title  of  "  The  Gospel  Doctor."  But  the 
greatest  work  of  his  life  was  to  be  the  translation  of  the 
Scriptures  into  the  English  language.  In  a  work  on  "  The 
Truth  and  Meaning  of  Scripture/'  he  expressed  his  inten- 
tion to  translate  the  Bible,  so  that  every  man  in  England 
might  read,  in"  the  language  in  which  he  was  born,  the  won- 
derful works  of  God. 

But  suddenly  his  labors  were  stopped.  Though  not  yet 
sixty  years  of  age,  unceasing  toil,  study,  and  the  assaults  of 
his  enemies,  had  told  upon  his  strength,  and  made  him  pre- 
maturely old.  He  was  attacked  by  a  dangerous  illness.  The 
tidings  brought  great  joy  to  the  friars.  Now  they  thought 
he  would  bitterly  repent  the  evil  he  had  done  the  church, 
and  they  hurried  to  his  chamber  to  listen  to  his  confession. 
Representatives  from  the  four  religious  orders,  with  four  civil 
officers,  gathered  about  the  supposed  dying  man.  "  You  have 
death  on  your  lips,"  they  said ;  "  be  touched  by  your  faults, 
and  retract  in  our  presence  all  you  have  said  to  our  injury." 
The  reformer  listened  in  silence;  then  he  bade  his  attendant 
raise  him  in  his  bed,  and  gazing  steadily  upon  them  as  they 
stood  waiting  for  his  recantation,  he  said,  in  the  firm,  strong 
voice  which  had  so  often  caused  them  to  tremble,  "I  shall 


88  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

not  die,  but  live,  and  declare  the  evil  deeds  of  the  friars." 
Astonished  and  abashed,  the  monks  hurried  from  the  room. 

\Y\vl iil'c's  words  were  fulfilled.  He  lived  to  place  in  the 
hands  of  his  countrymen  the  most  powerful  of  all  weapons 
against  Rome;  to  give  them  the  Bible,  the  Heaven-appointed 
agent  to  liberate,  enlighten,  and  evangelize  the  people.  There 
were  many  and  great  obstacles  to  surmount  in  the  accom- 
plishment of  this  work.  Wycliffe  was  weighed  down  with 
infirmities,  he  knew  that  only  a  few  years  for  labor  remained 
for  him,  he  saw  the  opposition  which  he  must  meet ;  but, 
encouraged  by  the  promises  of  God's  Word,  he  went  for- 
ward nothing  daunted.  In  the  full  vigor  of  his  intellectual 
powers,  rich  in  experience,  he  had  been  preserved  and  pre- 
pared by  God's  special  providence  for  this,  the  greatest  of 
his  labors.  While  all  Christendom  was  filled  with  tumult, 
the  reformer,  in  his  rectory  at  Lutterworth,  unheeding  the 
storm  that  raged  without,  applied  himself  to  his  chosen  task. 

At  last  the  work  was  completed, — the  first  English  trans- 
lation of  the  Bible  ever  made.  The  Word  of  God  was  opened 
to  England.  The  reformer  feared  not  now  the  prison  or 
the  stake.  He  had  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  English  peo- 
ple a  light  which  should  never  be  extinguished.  In  giving 
the  Bible  to  his  countrymen,  he  had  done  more  to  break  the 
fetters  of  ignorance  and  vice,  more  to  liberate  and  elevat<- 
his  country,  than  was  ever  achieved  by  the  most  brilliant 
victories  on  fields  of  battle. 

The  art  of  printing  being  still  unknown,  it  was  only  by 
slow  and  wearisome  labor  that  copies  of  the  Bible  could  be 
multiplied.  So  great  was  the  interest  to  obtain  the  book, 
that  many  willingly  engaged  in  the  work  of  transcribing  it, 
but  it  was  with  difficulty  that  the  copyists  could  supply  the 
demand.  Some  of  the  more  wealthy  purchasers  desired  the 
whole  Bible.  Others  bought  only  a  portion.  In  many  cases, 
several  families  united  to  purchase  a  copy.  Thus  Wycliffe's 
Bible  soon  found  its  way  to  the  homes  of  the  people. 

The  appeal  to  men's  reason  aroused  them  from  their  pas- 


JOHN  WYCLIFFE. 


sive  submission  to  papal  dogmas.  Wycliffe  now  taught  the 
distinctive  doctrines  of  Protestantism, — salvation  through 
faith  in  Christ,  and  the  sole  infallibility  of  the  Scriptures. 
The  preachers  whom  he  had  sent  out  circulated  the  Bible, 
together  with  the  reformer's  writings,  and  with  such  success 
that  the  new  faith  was  accepted  by  nearly  one-half  of  the 
people  of  England. 

The  appearance  of  the  Scriptures  brought  dismay  to  the 
authorities  of  the  church.  They  had  now  to  meet  an  agency 
more  powerful  than  Wycliffe, — an  agency  against  which 
their  weapons  wrould  avail  little.  There  was  at  this  time  no 
law  in  England  prohibiting  the  Bible,  for  it  had  never  before 
been  published  in  the  language  of  the  people.  Such  laws 
were  afterward  enacted  and  rigorously  enforced.  Mean- 
while, notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  the  priests,  there  was  for 
a  season  opportunity  for  the  circulation  of  the  Word  of  God. 

Again  the  papist  leaders  plotted  to  silence  the  reformer's 
voice.  Before  three  tribunals  he  was  successively  summoned 
for  trial,  but  without  avail.  First  a  synod  of  bishops  de- 
clared his  writings  heretical,  and,  winning  the  young  king, 
Richard  II.,  to  their  side,  they  obtained  a  royal  decree  con- 
signing to  prison  all  who  should  hold  the  condemned 
doctrines. 

Wycliffe  appealed  from  the  synod  to  Parliament;  he  fear- 
lessly arraigned  the  hierarchy  before  the  national  council, 
and  demanded  a  reform  of  the  enormous  abuses  sanctioned 
by  the  church.  With  convincing  power  he  portrayed  the 
usurpations  and  corruptions  of  the  papal  see.  His  enemies 
were  brought  to  confusion.  The  friends  and  supporters  of 
Wycliffe  had  been  forced  to  yield,  and  it  had  been  confi- 
dently expected  that  the  reformer  himself,  in  his  old  age, 
alone  and  friendless,  would  bow  to  the  combined  authority 
of  the  crown  and  the  mitre.  But  instead  of  this  the  papists 
saw  themselves  defeated.  Parliament,  roused  by  the  stirring 
appeals  of  Wycliffe,  repealed  the  persecuting  edict,  and  the 
reformer  was  again  at  liberty. 


90  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

A  third  time  he  was  brought  to  trial,  and  now  before  the 
highest  ecclesiastical  tribunal  in  the  kingdom.  Here  no 
favor  would  be  shown  to  heresy.  Here  at  last  Rome  would 
triumph,  and  the  reformer's  work  would  be  stopped.  So 
thought  the  papists.  If  they  could  but  accomplish  their 
purpose,  Wycliffe  would  be  forced  to  abjure  his  doctrines,  or 
would  leave  the  court  only  for  the  flames. 

But  Wycliffe  did  not  retract;  he  would  not  dissemble.  He 
fearlessly  maintained  his  teachings,  and  repelled  the  accu- 
sations of  his  persecutors.  Losing  sight  of  himself,  of  his 
position,  of  the  occasion,  he  summoned  his  hearers  before 
the  divine  tribunal,  and  weighed  their  sophistries  and 
deceptions  in  the  balances  of  eternal  truth.  The  power  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  was  felt  in  the  council  room.  A  spell  from 
God  was  upon  the  hearers.  They  seemed  to  have  no  power 
to  leave  the  place.  As  arrows  from  the  Lord's  quiver,  the 
reformer's  words  pierced  their  hearts.  The  charge  of  her- 
esy, which  they  had  brought  against  him,  he  with  convincing 
power  threw  back  upon  themselves.  Why,  he  demanded, 
did  they  dare  to  spread  their  errors? — For  the  sake  of  gain, 
to  make  merchandise  of  the  grace  of  God. 

"With  whom,  think  you,"  he  finally  said,  " are  you  con- 
tending? With  an  old  man  on  the  brink  of  the  grave? — No! 
with  truth, — truth  which  is  stronger  than  you,  and  will 
overcome  you."  So  saying,  he  withdrew  from  the  assembly, 
and  not  one  of  his  adversaries  attempted  to  prevent  him. 

Wycliffe's  work  was  almost  done,  the  banner  of  truth  which 
he  had  so  long  borne  was  soon  to  fall  from  his  hand;  but 
once  more  he  was  to  bear  witness  for  the  gospel.  The  truth 
was  to  be  proclaimed  from  the  very  stronghold  of  the  king- 
dom of  error.  Wycliffe  was  summoned  for  trial  before  the 
papal  tribunal  at  Rome,  which  had  so  often  shed  the  blood 
of  the  saints.  He  was  not  blind  to  the  danger  that  threat- 
ened him,  yet  he  would  have  obeyed  the  summons,  had  not 
a  shock  of  palsy  made  it  impossible  for  him  to  perform  the 
journey.  But  though  his  voice  was  not  to  be  heard  at  Rome, 
he  could  speak  by  letter,  and  this  he  determined  to  do . 


JOHN   WYCLIFFK  91 


From  his  rectory  the  reformer  wrote  to  the  pope  a  letter, 
which,  while  respectful  in  tone  and  Christian  in  spirit,  was  a 
keen  rebuke  to  the  pomp  and  pride  of  the  papal  see.  "Ver- 
ily I  do  rejoice/'  he  said,  "to  open  and  declare  unto  every 
man  the  faith  which  I  do  hold,  and  specially  unto  the 
bishop  of  Rome ;  the  which  forasmuch  as  I  do  suppose  to 
be  sound  and  true,  he  will  most  willingly  confirm  my  said 
faith,  or  if  it  be  erroneous,  amend  the  same.  First,  I  believe 
that  the  gospel  of  Christ  is  the  whole  body  of  God's 
law.  ...  I  do  give  and  hold  the  bishop  of  Rome,-  foras- 
much as  he  be  the  vicar  of  Christ  here  on  earth,  to  be  bound 
most  of  all  men  unto  that  law  of  the  gospel.  For  the  great- 
ness among  Christ's  disciples  did  not  consist  in  worldly  dig- 
nity or  honors,  but  in  the  near  and  exact  following  of  Christ 
in  his  life  and  manners.  .  .  .  Christ  for  the  time  of  his 
pilgrimage  here  was  a  most  poor  man,  abjecting  and  casting 
off  all  worldly  rule  and  honor. 

"No  faithful  man  ought  to  follow  either  the  pope  himself, 
or  any  of  the  holy  men,  but  in  such  points  as  he  hath  fol- 
lowed the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  For  Peter  and  the  sons  of  Zeb- 
edee,  by  desiring  worldly  honor,  contrary  to  the  following  of 
Christ's  steps,  did  offend,  and  therefore  in  those  errors  they 
are  not  to  be  followed. 

"The  pope  ought  to  leave  unto  the  secular  power  all  tem- 
poral dominion  and  rule,  and  thereunto*  effectually  move  and 
exhort  his  whole  clergy;  for  so  did  Christ,  and  especially  by 
his  apostles. 

"  If  I  have  erred  in  any  of  these  points,  I  will  most  hum- 
bly submit  myself  unto  correction  even  by  death,  if  necessity 
so  require.  If  I  could  labor  according  to  my  will  and  desire 
in  mine  own  person,  I  would  surely  present  myself  before  the 
bishop  of  Rome.  But  the  Lord  hath  otherwise  visited  me  to 
the  contrary,  and  hath  taught  me  to  obey  God  rather  than 
men." 

In  closing  he  said :  "  Let  us  pray  unto  our  God,  that  he 
will  so  stir  up  our  pope,  Urban  the  Sixth,  as  he  began,  that 


92  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

he  with  his  clergy  may  follow  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  life 
and  manners,  and  that  they  may  teach  the  people  effect- 
ually, and  that  they  likewise  may  faithfully  follow  them  in 
the  same." 

Thus  Wycliffe  presented  to  the  pope  and  his  cardinals  the 
meekness  and  humility  of  Christ,  exhibiting  not  only  to 
themselves  but  to  all  Christendom  the  contrast  between  them 
and  the  Master  whose  representatives  they  professed  to  be» 

Wycliffe  fully  expected  that  his  life  would  be  the  price  of 
his  fidelity.  The  king,  the  pope,  and  the  bishops  were  united 
to  accomplish  his  ruin,  and  it  seemed  certain  that  a  few 
months  at  most  would  bring  him  to  the  stake.  But  his 
courage  was  unshaken.  "  Why  do  you  talk  of  seeking  the 
crown  of  martyrdom  afar?"  he  said.  "Preach  the  gospel  of 
Christ  to  haughty  prelates,  and  martyrdom  will  not  fail  you. 
What  I  I  should  live  and  be  silent?  .  .  .  Never!  Let 
the  blow  fall.  I  await  its  coming." 

But  God's  providence  still  shielded  his  servant.  The  man 
who  for  a  whole  lifetime  had  stood  boldly  in  defense  of  the 
truth,  in  daily  peril  of  his  life,  was  not  to  fall  a  victim  to 
the  hatred  of  its  foes.  Wycliffe  had  never  sought  to  shield 
himself,  but  the  Lord  had  been  his  protector;  and  now, 
when  his  enemies  felt  sure  of  their  prey,  God's  hand  removed 
him  beyond  their  reach.  In  his  church  at  Lutterworth,  as 
he  was  about  to  dispense  the  communion,  he  fell  stricken 
with  palsy,  and  in  a  short  time  yielded  up  his  life. 

God  had  appointed  to  Wycliffe  his  work.  He  had  put 
the  word  of  truth  in  his  mouth,  and  he  set  a  guard  about 
him  that  this  word  might  come  to  the  people.  His  life  was 
protected,  and  his  labors  prolonged,  until  a  foundation  was 
laid  for  the  great  work  of  the  Reformation. 

Wycliffe  came  from  the  obscurity  of  the  Dark  Ages. 
There  were  none  who  went  before  nim  from  whose  work  he 
could  shape  his  system  of  reform.  Raised  up  like  John  the 
Baptist  to  accomplish  a  special  mission,  he  was  the  herald  of 
a  new  era.  Yet  in  the  system  of  truth  which  he  presented 


JOHN   WYCLIPFE.  93 


there  was  a  unity  and  completeness  which  reformers  who 
followed  him  did  not  exceed,  and  which  some  did  not  reach, 
even  a  hundred  years  later.  So  broad  and  deep  was  laid  the 
foundation,  so  firm  and  true  was  the  framework,  that  it 
needed  not  to  be  reconstructed  by  those  who  came  after  him. 

The  great  movement  which  Wycliffe  inaugurated,  which 
was  to  liberate  the  conscience  and  the  intellect,  and  set  free 
the  nations  so  long  bound  to  the  triumphal  car  of  Rome, 
had  its  spring  in  the  Bible.  Here  was  the  source  of  that 
stream  of  blessing,  which,  like  the  water  of  life,  has  flowed 
down  the  ages  since  the  fourteenth  century.  Wycliffe  ac- 
cepted the  Holy  Scriptures  with  implicit  faith  as  the  inspired 
revelation  of  God's  will,  a  sufficient  rule  of  faith  and  practice. 
He  had  been  educated  to  regard  the  Church  of  Rome  as  the 
divine,  infallible  authority,  and  to  accept  with  unquestioning 
reverence  the  established  teachings  and  customs  of  a  thou- 
sand years;  but  he  turned  away  from  all  these  to  listen  to 
God's  holy  Word.  This  was  the  authority  which  he  urged 
the  people  to  acknowledge.  Instead  of  the  church  speaking 
through  the  pope,  he  declared  the  only  true  authority  to  be 
the  voice  of  God  speaking  through  his  Word.  And  he 
taught  not  only  that  the  Bible  is  a  perfect  revelation  of 
God's  will,  but  that  the  Holy  Spirit  is  its  only  interpreter, 
and  that  every  man  is,  by  the  study  of  its  teachings,  to  learn 
his  duty  for  himself.  Thus  he  turned  the  minds  of  men 
from  the  pope  and  the  Church  of  Rome  to  the  Word  of  God. 

Wycliffe  was  one  of  the  greatest  of  the  reformers.  In 
breadth  of  intellect,  in  clearness  of  thought,  in  firmness  to 
maintain  the  truth,  and  boldness  to  defend  it,  he  was  equaled 
by  few  who  came  after  him.  Purity  of  life,  unwearying 
diligence  in  study  and  in  labor,  incorruptible  integrity,  and 
Christ-like  love  and  faithfulness  in  his  ministry,  character- 
ized the  first  of  the  reformers.  And  this  notwithstanding 
the  intellectual  darkness  and  moral  corruption  of  the  age 
from  which  he  emerged. 

The  character  of  Wycliffe  is  a  testimony  to  the  educating. 


94  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

transforming  power  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  It  was  the 
Bible  that  made  him  what  he  was.  The  effort  to  grasp  the 
great  truths  of  revelation  imparts  freshness  and  vigor  to  all 
the  faculties.  It  expands  the  mind,  sharpens  the  percep- 
tions, and  ripens  the  judgment.  The  study  of  the  Bible  will 
ennoble  every  thought,  feeling,  and  aspiration  as  no  other 
study  can.  It  gives  stability  of  purpose,  patience,  courage, 
and  fortitude;  it  refines  the  character,  and  sanctifies  the  soul. 
An  earnest,  reverent  study  of  the  Scriptures — bringing  the 
mind  of  the  student  in  direct  contact  with  the  infinite  mind 
— would  give  to  the  world  men  of  stronger  and  more  active 
intellect,  as  well  as  of  nobler  principle,  than  has  ever  resulted 
from  the  ablest  training  that  human  philosophy  affords. 
"The  entrance  of  Thy  words,"  says  the  psalmist,  "giveth 
light;  it  giveth  understanding."1 

The  doctrines  which  had  been  taught  by  Wycliffe  con- 
tinued for  a  time  to  spread;  his  followers,  known  as  Wyc- 
liffites  and  Lollards,  not  only  traversed  England,  but  scat- 
tered to  other  lands,  carrying  the  knowledge  of  the  gospel. 
Now  that  their  leader  was  removed,  the  preachers  labored 
with  even  greater  zeal  than  before,  and  multitudes  flocked  to 
listen  to  their  teachings.  Some  of  the  nobility,  and  even  the 
wife  of  the  king,  were  among  the  converts.  In  many  places 
there  was  a  marked  reform  in  the  manners  of  the  people, 
and  the  idolatrous  symbols  of  Romanism  were  removed 
from  the  churches.  But  soon  the  pitiless  storm  of  persecu- 
tion burst  upon  those  who  had  dared  to  accept  the  Bible  as 
their  guide.  The  English  monarchs,  eager  to  strengthen 
their  power  by  securing  the  support  of  Rome,  did  not  Jiesi- 
tate  to  sacrifice  the  reformers.  For  the  first  time  in  the  his- 
tory of  England,  the  stake  was  decreed  against  the  disciples 
of  the  gospel.  Martyrdom  succeeded  martyrdom.  The 
advocates  of  truth,  proscribed  and  tortured,  could  only  pour 
their  cries  into  the  ear  of  the  Lord  of  Sabaotli.  limited  as 
foes  of  the  church  and  traitors  to  the  realm,  they  continued 

1  Ps.  119:130. 


JOHN    WYCLIFFE.  95 

to  preach  in  secret  places,  finding  shelter  as  best  they  could 
in  the  humble  homes  of  the  poor,  and  often  hiding  away 
even  in  dens  and  caves. 

Notwithstanding  the  rage  of  persecution,  a  calm,  devout, 
earnest,  patient  protest  against  the  prevailing  corruption  of 
religious  faith  continued  for  centuries  to  be  uttered.  The 
Christians  of  that  early  time  had  only  a  partial  knowledge 
of  the  truth,  but  they  had  learned  to  love  and  obey  God's 
Word,  and  they  patiently  suffered  for  its  sake.  Like  the 
disciples  in  apostolic  days,  many  sacrificed  their  worldly 
possessions  for  the  cause  of  Christ.  Those  who  were  per- 
mitted to  dwell  in  their  homes,  gladly  sheltered  their  ban- 
ished brethren,  and  when  they  too  were  driven  forth,  they 
cheerfully  accepted  the  lot  of  the  outcast.  Thousands,  it  is 
true,  terrified  by  the  fury  of  their  persecutors,  purchased 
their  freedom  at  the  sacrifice  of  their  faith,  and  went  out  of 
their  prisons,  clothed  in  penitents'  robes,  to  publish  their 
recantation.  But  the  number  was  not  small — and  among 
them  were  men  of  noble  birth  as  well  as  the  humble  and 
..owly — who  bore  fearless  testimony  to  the  truth  in  dungeon 
eells,  in  "Lollard  towers,"  and  in  the  midst  of  torture  and 
flame,  rejoicing  that  they  were  counted  worthy  to  know  "the 
fellowship  of  His  sufferings." 

The  papists  had  failed  to  work  their  will  with  Wycliffe 
during  his  life,  and  their  hatred  could  not  be  satisfied  while 
his  body  rested  quietly  in  the  grave.  By  the  decree  of  the 
Council  of  Constance,  more  than  forty  years  after  his  death 
his  bones  were  exhumed  and  publicly  burned,  and  the  ashes 
were  thrown  into  a  neighboring  brook.  "  The  brook,"  says 
an  old  writer,  "  did  convey  his  ashes  into  Avon,  Avon  into 
Severn,  Severn  into  the  narrow  seas,  and  they  into  the  main 
ocean;  and  thus  the  ashes  of  Wycliffe  are  the  emblem  of  his 
doctrine,  which  now  is  dispersed  all  the  world  over."  Little 
did  his  enemies  realize  the  significance  of  their  malicious  act. 

It  was  through  the  writings  of  Wycliffe  that  John  Huss, 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  Bohemia,  was  led  to  renounce  many  of  the  errors  of  Ro- 
manism, and  to  enter  upon  the  work  of  reform.  Thus  in 
these  two  countries,  so  widely  separated,  the  seed  of  truth  was 
sown.  From  Bohemia  the  work  extended  to  other  lands. 
The  minds  of  men  were  directed  to  the  long-forgotten  Word 
of  God.  A  divine  hand  was  preparing  the  way  for  the  Great 
Reformation. 


LUTTERWORTH    CHURCH. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


HUSS  AND  JEROME. 

THE  gospel  had  been  planted  in  Bohemia  as  early  as  the 
ninth  century.  The  Bible  was  translated,  and  public  wor- 
ship was  conducted  in  the  language  of  the  people.  But  as 
the  power  of  the  pope  increased,  so  the  Word  of  God  was 
obscured.  Gregory  VII.,  who  had  taken  it  upon  him  "to 
pull  down  the  pride  of  kings,"  was.  no  less  intent  upon  enslav- 
ing the  people,  and  accordingly  a  bull  was  issued  forbidding 
public  worship  to  be  conducted  in  the  Bohemian  tongue. 
The  pope  declared  that  "  God  was  pleased  that  his  worship 
should  be  celebrated  in  an  unknown  tongue,  and  that  a 
neglect  of  this  rule  had  given  rise  to  many  evils  and  here- 
sies." Thus  Rome  decreed  that  the  light  of  God's  Word 
should  be  extinguished,  and  the  people  should  be  shut  up 
in  darkness.  But  Heaven  had  provided  other  agencies  for 
the  preservation  of  the  church.  Many  of  the  Waldenses 
and  Albigenses,  driven  by  persecution  from  their  homes  in 
France  and  Italy,  came  to  Bohemia.  Though  they  dared 
not  teach  openly,  they  labored  zealously  in  secret.  Thus  the 
true  faith  was  preserved  from  century  to  century. 

Before  the  days  of  Huss,  there  were  men  in  Bohemia  who 
rose  up  to  condemn  openly  the  corruption  in  the  church 
and  the  profligacy  of  the  people.  Their  labors  excited  wide- 
spread interest.  The  fears  of  the  hierarchy  were  roused,  and 
persecution  was  opened  against  the  disciples  of  the  gospel. 
Driven  to  worship  in  the  forests  and  the  mountains,  they 
were  hunted  by  soldiers,  and  many  were  put  to  death.  After 
a  time  it  was  decreed  that  all  who  departed  from  the  Rom- 

(97) 


98  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

ish  worship  should  be  burned.  But  while  the  Christians 
yielded  up  their  lives,  they  looked  forward  to  the  triumph 
of  their  cause.  One  of  those  who  taught  that  "salvation 
was  only  to  be  found  by  faith  in  the  crucified  Saviour," 
declared  when  dying,  "  The  rage  of  the  enemies  of  truth  now 
prevails  against  us,  but  it  will  not  be  forever;  there  shall 
arise  one  from  among  the  common  people,  without  sword 
or  authority,  and  against  him  they  shall  not  be  able  to  pre- 
vail." Luther's,  time  was  yet  far  distant;  but  already  one 
was  rising,  whose  testimony  against  Rome  would  stir  the 
nations. 

John  Huss  was  of  humble  birth,  and  was  early  left  an 
orphan  by  the  death  of  his  father.  His  pious  mother,  regard- 
ing education  and  the  fear  of  God  as  the  most  valuable  of 
possessions,  sought  to  secure  this  heritage  for  her  son.  Huss 
studied  at  the  provincial  school,  and  then  repaired  to  the  uni- 
versity at  Prague,  receiving  admission  as  a  charity  scholar. 
He  was  accompanied  on  the  journey  to  Prague  by  his  mother; 
widowed  and  poor,  she  had  no  gift  of  worldly  wealth  to  be- 
stow upon  her  son,  but  as  they  drew  near  to  the  great  city, 
she  kneeled  down  beside  the  fatherless  youth,  and  invoked 
for  him  the  blessing  of  their  Father  in  Heaven.  Little  did 
that  mother  realize  how  her  prayer  was  to  be  answered. 

At  the  university,  Huss  soon  distinguished  himself  by  his 
untiring  application  and  rapid  progress,  while  his  blameless 
life  and  gentle,  winning  deportment  gained  him  universal 
esteem.  He  was  a  sincere  adherent  of  the  Romish  Church, 
and  an  earnest  seeker  for  the  spiritual  blessings  which  it 
professes  to  bestow.  On  the  occasion  of  a  jubilee,  he  went 
to  confession,  paid  the  last  few  coins  in  his  scanty  store,  and 
joined  in  tin1  processions,  that  he  might  share  in  the  absolu- 
tion promised.  After  completing  his  college  course,  he 
entered  the  priesthood,  and,  rapidly  attaining  to  eminence, 
he  soon  became  attached  to  the  court  of  the  king.  He  was 
also  made  professor  and  afterward  rector  of  the  university 
where  he  lm<l  received  his  education.  In  a  few  years  the 


fftTSS  AND  JEROME.  99 

humble  charity  scholar  had  become  the  pride  of  his  country, 
and  his  name  was  renowned  throughout  Europe. 

But  it  was  in  another  field  that  Huss  began  the  work  of 
reform.  Several  years  after  taking  priest's  orders  he  was 
appointed  preacher  of  the  chapel  of  Bethlehem.  The 
founder  of  this  chapel  had  advocated,  as  a  matter  of  great 
importance,  the  preaching  of  the  Scriptures  in  the  language 
of  the  people.  Notwithstanding  Rome's  opposition  to  this 
practice,  it  had  not  been  wholly  discontinued  in  Bohemia. 
But  there  was  great  ignorance  of  the  Bible,  and  the  worst 
vices  prevailed  among  the  people  of  all  ranks.  These  evils 
Huss  unsparingly  denounced,  appealing  to  the  Word  of 
God  to  enforce  the  principles  of  truth  and  purity  which  he 
inculcated. 

A  citizen  of  Prague,  Jerome,  who  afterward  became  so 
closely  associated  with  Huss,  had,  on  returning  from  En- 
gland, brought  with  him  the  writings  of  Wycliffe.  The  queen 
of  England,  who  had  been  a  convert  to  Wycliffe's  teachings, 
was  a  Bohemian  princess,  and  through  her  influence  also  the 
reformer's  works  were  widely  circulated  in  her  native  coun- 
try. These  works  Huss  read  writh  interest;  he  believed  their 
author  to  be  a  sincere  Christian,  and  was  inclined  to  regard 
with  favor  the  reforms  which  he  advocated.  Already, 
though  he  knew  it  not,  Huss  had  entered  upon  a  path 
which  was  to  lead  him  far  away  from  Rome. 

About  this  time  there  arrived  in  Prague  two  strangers 
from  England,  men  of  learning,  who  had  received  the  light, 
and  had  come  to  spread  it  in  this  distant  land.  Beginning 
with  an  open  attack  on  the  pope's  supremacy,  they  were  soon 
silenced  by  the  authorities ;  but  being  unwilling  to  relinquish 
their  purpose,  they  had  recourse  to  other  measures.  Being 
artists  as  well  as  preachers,  they  proceeded  to  exercise  their 
skill.  In  a  place  open  to  the  public  they  drew  two  pictures. 
One  represented  the  entrance  of  Christ  into  Jerusalem, "  meek, 
and  sitting  upon  an  ass,"1  and  followed  by  his  disciples  in 
travel-worn  garments  and  with  naked  feet.  The  other  pict- 

iMatt.  21:5. 


100  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

ure  portrayed  a  pontifical  procession, — the  pope  arreyed  in 
his  rich  robes  and  triple  crown,  mounted  upon  a  horse  mag- 
nificently adorned,  preceded  by  trumpeters,  and  followed  by 
cardinals  and  prelates  in  dazzling  array. 

Here  was  a  sermon  which  arrested  the  attention  of  all 
classes.  Crowds  came  to  gaze  upon  the  drawings.  None 
could  fail  to  read  the  moral,  and  many  were  deeply  im- 
pressed by  the  contrast  between  the  meekness  and  humility 
of  Christ  the  Master,  and  the  pride  and  arrogance  of  the 
pope,  his  professed  servant.  There  was  great  commotion  in 
Prague,  and  the  strangers  after  a  time  found  it  necessary, 
for  their  own  safety,  to  depart.  But  the  lesson  they  had 
taught  was  not  forgotten.  The  pictures  made  a  deep  im- 
pression on  the  mind  of  Huss,  and  led  him  to  a  closer  study 
of  the  Bible  and  of  Wycliffe's  writings.  Though  he  was  not 
prepared,  even  yet,  to  accept  all  the  reforms  advocated  by 
Wycliffe,  he  saw  more  clearly  the  true  character  of  the 
papacy,  and  with  greater  zeal  denounced  the  pride,  the 
ambition,  and  the  corruption  of  the  hierarchy. 

From  Bohemia  the  light  extended  to  Germany;  for  dis- 
turbances in  the  University  of  Prague  caused  the  withdrawal 
of  hundreds  of  German  students.  Many  of  them  had  re- 
ceived from  Huss  their  first  knowledge  of  the  Bible,  and  on 
their  return  they  spread  the  gospel  in  their  fatherland. 

Tidings  of  the  work  at  Prague  were  carried  to  Rome,  and 
Huss  was  soon  summoned  to  appear  before  the  pope.  To 
obey  would  be  to  expose  himself  to  certain  death.  The  king 
and  queen  of  Bohemia,  the  university,  members  of  the  no- 
bility, and  officers  of  the  government,  united  in  an  appeal  to 
the  pontiff  that  Huss  be  permitted  to  remain  at  Prague,  and 
to  answer  at  Rome  by  deputy.  Instead  of  granting  this 
request,  the  pope  proceeded  to  the  trial  and  condemnation 
of  Huss,  and  then  declared  the  city  of  Prague  to  be  under 
interdict. 

In  that  age  this  sentence,  whenever  pronounced,  created 
widespread  alarm.  The  ceremonies  by  which  it  was  accom- 


HUSS  AND  JEROME.  101 


panied  were  well  adapted  to  strike  terror  to  a  people  who 
looked  upon  the  pope  as  the  representative  of  God  himself, 
holding  the  keys  of  Heaven  and  hell,  and  possessing  power 
to  invoke  temporal  as  well  as  spiritual  judgments.  It  was 
believed  that  the  gates  of  Heaven  were  closed  against  the 
region  smitten  with  interdict ;  that  until  it  should  please 
the  pope  to  remove  the  ban,  the  dead  were  shut  out  from 
the  abodes  of  bliss.  In  token  of  this  terrible  calamity,  all 
the  services  of  religion  were  suspended.  The  churches  Avere 
closed.  Marriages  were  solemnized  in  the  church-yard. 
The  dead,  denied  burial  in  consecrated  ground,  were  in- 
terred, without  the  rites  of  sepulture,  in  the  ditches  or  the 
fields.  Thus  by  measures  which  appealed  to  the  imagina- 
tion, Rome  essayed  to  control  the  consciences  of  men. 

The  city  of  Prague  was  filled  with  tumult.  A  large  class 
denounced  Huss  as  the  cause  of  all  their  calamities,  and 
demanded  that  he  be  given  up  to  the  vengeance  of  Rome. 
To  quiet  the  storm,  the  reformer  withdrew  for  a  time  to  his 
native  village.  Writing  to  the  friends  whom  he  had  left  at 
Prague,  he  said :  "  If  I  have  withdrawn  from  the  midst  of 
you,  it  is  to  follow  the  precept  and  example  of  Jesus  Christ, 
in  order  not  to  give  room  to  the  ill-minded  to  draw  on  them- 
selves eternal  condemnation,  and  in  order  not  to  be  to  the 
pious  a  cause  of  affliction  and  persecution.  I  have  retired 
also  through  an  apprehension  that  impious  priests  might 
continue  for  a  longer  time  to  prohibit  the  preaching  of  the 
Word  of  God  amongst  you ;  but  I  have  not  quitted  you  to 
deny  the  divine  truth,  for  which,  with  God's  assistance,  I  am 
willing  to  die."  Huss  did  not  cease  his  labors,  but  traveled 
through  the  surrounding  country,  preaching  to  eager  crowds. 
Thus  the  measures  to  which  the  pope  resorted  to  suppress 
the  gospel,  were  causing  it  to  be  the  more  widely  extended. 
"We  can  do  nothing  against  the  truth,  but  for  the  truth."1 

"  The  mind  of  Huss,  at  this  stage  of  his  career,  would  seem 
to  have  been  the  scene  of  a  painful  conflict.  Although  the 
church  was  seeking  to  overwhelm  him  by  her  thunder-bolts, 

12  Cor.  13:8. 


102  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


he  had  not  renounced  her  authority.  The  Roman  Church 
was  still  to  him  the  spouse  of  Christ,  and  the  pope  was  the 
representative  and  vicar  of  God.  What  Huss  was  warring 
against  was  the  abuse  of  authority,  not  the  principle  itself. 
This  brought  on  a  terrible  conflict  between  the  convictions 
of  his  understanding  and  the  claims  of  his  conscience.  If 
the  authority  w^as  just  and  infallible,  as  he  believed  it  to  be, 
how  came  it  that  he  felt  compelled  to  disobey  it?  To  obey, 
he  saw,  was  to  sin;  but  why  should  obedience  to  an  infalli- 
ble church  lead  to  such  an  issue?  This  was  the  problem  he 
could  not  solve;  this  was  the  doubt  that  tortured  him  from 
hour  to  hour.  The  nearest  approximation  to  a  solution, 
which  he  was  able  to  make,  was  that  it  had  happened  again, 
as  once  before  in  the  days  of  the  Saviour,  that  the  priests  of 
the  church  had  become  wicked  persons,  and  wrere  using  their 
lawful  authority  for  unlawful  ends.  This  led  him  to  adopt 
for  his  own  guidance,  and  to  preach  to  others  for  theirs,  the 
maxim  that  the  precepts  of  Scripture,  conveyed  through 
the  understanding,  are  to  rule  the  conscience;  in  other 
words,  that  God  speaking  in  the  Bible,  and  not  the  church 
speaking  through  the  priesthood,  is  the  one  infallible  guide."' 

When  after  a  time  the  excitement  in  Prague  subsided, 
Huss  returned  to  his  chapel  of  Bethlehem,  to  continue  with 
greater  zeal  and  courage  the  preaching  of  the  Word  of.  God. 
His  enemies  were  active  and  powerful,  but  the  queen  and 
many  of  the  nobles  were  his  friends,  and  the  people  in  great 
numbers  sided  with  him.  Comparing  his  pure  and  elevat- 
ing teachings  and  holy  life  with  the  degrading  dogmas 
which  the  Romanists  preached,  and  the  avarice  and  de- 
bauchery which  they  practiced,  many  regarded  it  an  honor 
to  be  on  his  side. 

Hitherto  Huss  had  stood  alone  in- his  labors;  but  now 
Jerome,  who  while  in  England  had  accepted  the  teachings 
of  Wycliffe,  joined  in  the  work  of  reform.  The  two  were 
hereafter  united  in  their  lives,  and  in  death  they  were  not 
to  be  divided. 


HUSS  AND  JEROME. 


103 


Brilliancy  of  genius,  eloquence  and  learning — gifts  that 
win  popular  favor — were  possessed  in  a  pre-eminent  degree 
by  Jerome;  but  in  those  qualities  which  constitute  real 
strength  of  character,  Huss  was  the  greater.  His  calm  judg- 
ment served  as  a  restraint  upon  the  impulsive  spirit  of  Je- 
rome, who,  with  true  humility,  perceived  his  worth,  and 
yielded  to  his  counsels.  Under  their  united  labors  the  reform 
was  more  rapidly  extended. 

God  permitted  great  light  to  shine  upon  the  minds  of 
these  chosen  men,  revealing  to  them  many  of  the  errors  of 
Eome ;  but  they  did  not  receive  all  the  light  that  was  to  be 
given  to  the  world.  Through  these,  his  servants,  God  was 
leading  the  people  out  of  the  darkness  of  Romanism;  but 
there  were  many  and  great  obstacles  for  them  to  meet,  and 
lie  led  them  on,  step  by  step,  as  they  could  bear  it.  They 
were  not  prepared  to  receive  all  the  light  at  once.  Like  the 
full  glory  of  the  noontide  sun  to  those  who  have  long  dwelt 
in  darkness,  it  would,  if  presented,  have  caused  them  to  turn 
away.  Therefore  he  revealed  it  to  the  leaders,  little  by  little, 
as  it  could  be  received  by  the  people.  From  century  to 
century  other  faithful  workers  were  to  follow,  to  lead  the 
people,  on  still  farther  in  the  path  of  reform. 

The  schism  in  the  church  still  continued.  Three  popes 
were  now  contending  for  the  supremacy,  and  their  strife 
filled  Christendom  with  crime  and  tumult.  Not  content 
with  hurling  anathemas,  they  resorted  to  temporal  weapons. 
Each  cast  about  him  to  purchase  arms  and  to  obtain  soldiers. 
Of  course  money  must  be  had ;  and  to  procure  this,'  all  the 
gifts,  offices,  and  blessings  of  the  church  were  offered  fo^* 
sale.  The  priests  also,  imitating  their  superiors,  resorted  to 
simony  and  war  to  humble  their  rivals,  and  strengthen  their 
own  power.  With  daily  increasing  boldness,  Huss  thundered 
against  the  abominations  which  were  tolerated  in  the  name  of 
religion;  and  the  people  openly  accused  the  Romish  leaders 
as  the  cause  of  the  miseries  that  overwhelmed  Christendom. 

Again   the   city  of   Prague   seemed   on   the   verge   of  a 


104  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

bloody  conflict.  As  in  former  ages,  God's  servant  was  accused 
as  "he  that  troubleth  Israel." l  The  city  was  again  placed 
under  interdict,  and  Huss  withdrew  to  his  native  village. 
The  testimony  so  faithfully  borne  from  his  loved  chapel  of 
Bethlehem  was  ended.  He  was  to  speak  from  a  wider  stage, 
to  all  Christendom,  before  laying  down  his  life  as  a  witness 
for  the  truth. 

To  cure  the  evils  that  were  distracting  Europe,  a  general 
council  was  summoned  to  meet  at  Constance.  The  council 
was  called,  at  the  desire  of  the  emperor  Sigismund,  by  one  of 
the  three  rival  popes,  John  XXIII.  The  demand  for  a  coun- 
cil had  been  far  from  welcome  to  Pope  John,  whose  character 
and  policy  could  ill  bear  investigation,  even  by  prelates  as 
lax  in  morals  as  were  the  churchmen  of  those  times.  He 
dared  not,  however,  oppose  the  will  of  Sigismund. 

The  chief  objects  to  be  accomplished  by  the  council  were 
to  heal  the  schism  in  the  church,  and  to  root  out  heresy. 
Hence  the  two  anti-popes  were  summoned  to  appear  before 
it,  as  well  as  the  leading  propagator  of  the  new  opinions, 
John  Huss.  The  former,  having  regard  to  their  own  safety, 
did  not  attend  in  person,  but  were  represented  by  their  dele- 
gates. Pope  John,  while  ostensibly  the  convoker  of  the 
council,  came  to  it  with  many  misgivings,  suspecting  the 
emperor's  secret  purpose  to  depose  him,  and  fearing  to 
be  brought  to  account  for  the  vices  which  had  disgraced 
the  tiara,  as  well  as  for  the  crimes  which  had  secured  it. 
Yet  he  made  his  entry  into  the  city  of  Constance  with  great 
pomp,  attended  by  ecclesiastics  of  the  highest  rank,  and  fol- 
lowed by  a  train  of  courtiers.  All  the  clergy  and  dignita- 
ries of  the  city,  with  an  immense  crowd  of  citizens,  went  out 
to  welcome  him.  Above  his  head  was  a  golden  canopy, 
borne  by  four  of  the  chief  magistrates.  The  host  w;is  car- 
ried before  him,  and  the  rich  dresses  of  the  cardinals  and 
nobles  made  an  imposing  display* 

Meanwhile  another  traveler  was  approaching  Constance. 
Huss  was  conscious  of  the  dangers  which  threatened  hint 

1 1  Kings  18  1 17* 


8VSS  AND  JEROME.  105 

He  parted  from  his  friends  as  if  he  were  never  to  meet 
them  again,  and  went  on  his  journey  feeling  that  it  was 
leading  him  to  the  stake.  Notwithstanding  he  had  ob- 
tained a  safe-conduct  from  the  king  of  Bohemia,  and  re- 
ceived one  also  from  the  emperor  Sigismund  while  on  his 
journey,  he  made  all  his  arrangements  in  view  of  the  prob- 
ability of  his  death. 

In  a  letter  addressed  to  his  friends  at  Prague  he  said: 
"  I  arn  departing,  my  brethren,  with  a  safe-conduct  from  the 
king,  to  meet  my  numerous  and  mortal  enemies.  ...  I 
confide  altogether  in  the  all-powerful  God,  in  my  Saviour; 
I  trust  that  he  will  listen  to  your  ardent  prayers,  that  he 
will  infuse  his  prudence  and  his  wisdom  into  my  mouth,  in 
order  that  I  may  resist  them ;  and  that  he  will  accord  me 
his  Holy  Spirit  to  fortify  me  in  his  truth,  so  that  I  may  face 
with  courage,  temptations,  prison,  and,  if  necessary,  a  cruel 
death.  Jesus  Christ  suffered  for  his  well-beloved;  and  there- 
fore ought  we  to  be  astonished  that  he  has  left  us  his  exam- 
ple, in  order  that  we  may  ourselves  endure  with  patience  all 
things  for  our  own  salvation?  He  is  God,  and  we  are  his 
creatures;  he  is  the  Lord,  and  we  are  his  servants;  he  is 
Master  of  the  world,  and  we  are  contemptible  mortals; — yet 
he  suffered !  Why,  then,  should  we  not  suffer,  also,  particu- 
larly when  suffering  is  for  us  a  purification?  Therefore, 
beloved,  if  my  death  ought  to  contribute  to  his  glory,  pray 
that  it  may  come  quickly,  and  that  he  may  enable  me  to 
support  all  my  calamities  with  constancy.  But  if  it  be  bet- 
ter that  I  return  amongst  you,  let  us-  pray  to  God  that  I 
may  return  without  stain, — that  is,  that  I  may  not  suppress 
one  tittle  of  the  truth  of  the  gospel,  in  order  to  leave  my 
brethren  an  excellent  example  to  follow.  Probably,  there- 
fore, you  will  never  more  behold  my  face  at  Prague;  but 
should  the  will  of  the  all-powerful  God  deign  to  restore  me 
to  you,  let  us  then  advance  with  a  firmer  heart  in  the  knowl- 
edge and  the  love  of  his  law." 

In  another  letter,  to  a  priest  who  had  become  a  disciple  of 
9 


106  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  gospel,  Huss  spoke  with  deep  humility  of  his  own  errors, 
accusing  himself  of  having  felt  pleasure  in  wearing  rich 
apparel,  and  of  having  wasted  hours  in  trifling  occupations. 
He  then  added  these  touching  admonitions :  "  May  the  glory 
of  God  and  the  salvation  of  souls  occupy  thy  mind,  and  not 
the  possession  of  benefices  and  estates.  Beware  of  adorning 
thy  house  more  than  thy  soul;  and  above  all,  give  thy  care 
to  the  spiritual  edifice.  Be  pious  and  humble  with  the  poor, 
and  consume  not  thy  substance  in  feasting.  Shouldst  thou 
not  amend  thy  life  and  refrain  from  superfluities,  I  fear  that 
thou  wilt  be  severely  chastened,  as  I  am  myself.  .  .  . 
Thou  knowest  my  doctrine,  for  thou  hast  received  my  in- 
structions from  thy  childhood;  it  is  therefore  useless  for  me 
to  write  to  thee  any  further.  But  I  conjure  thee,  by  the 
mercy  of  our  Lord,  not  to  imitate  me  in  any  of  the  vanities 
into  which  thou  hast  seen  me  fall."  On  the  cover  of  the 
letter  he  added:  "I  conjure  thee,  my  friend,  not  to  break 
this  seal,  until  thou  shalt  have  acquired  the  certitude  that  I 
am  dead." 

On  his  journey,  Huss  everywhere  beheld  indications  of 
the  spread  of  his  doctrines,  and  the  favor  with  which  his 
cause  was  regarded.  The  people  thronged  to  meet  him,  and 
in  some  towns  the  magistrates  attended  him  through  their 
streets. 

Upon  arriving  at  Constance,  Huss  was  granted  full  liberty. 
To  the  emperor's  safe-conduct  was  added  a  personal  assur- 
ance of  protection  by  the  pope.  But  in  violation  of  these 
solemn  and  repeated  declarations,  the  reformer  was  in  a 
short  time  arrested,  by  order  of  the  pope  and  cardinals,  and 
thrust  into  a  loathsome  dungeon. 

The  pope,  however,  profiting  little  by  his  perfidy,  was  soon 
after  committed  to  the  same  prison.  He  had  been  proved 
before  the  council  to  be  guilty  of  the  basest  crimes,  besides 
murder,  simony,  and  adultery,  "sins  not  fit  to  be  named." 
So  the  council  itself  declared ;  and  he  was  finally  deprived 
of  the  tiara,  and  thrown  into  prison.  The  anti-popes  also 
were  deposed,  and  a  new  pontiff  was  chosen. 


SUSS  AND  JEROME.  107 

Though  the  pope  himself  had  been  guilty  of  greater 
crimes  than  Huss  had  ever  charged  upon  the  priests,  and 
for  which  he  had  demanded  a  reformation,  yet  the  same 
council  which  degraded  the  pontiff  proceeded  to  crush  the 
reformer.  The  imprisonment  of  Huss  excited  great  indig- 
nation in  Bohemia.  Powerful  noblemen  addressed  to  the 
council  earnest  protests  against  this  outrage.  The  emperor, 
who  was  loth  to  permit  the  violation  of  a  safe-conduct, 
opposed  the  proceedings  against  him.  But  the  enemies  of 
the  reformer  were  malignant  and  determined.  They  ap- 
pealed to  the  emperor's  prejudices,  to  his  fears,  to  his  zeal 
for  the  church.  They  brought  forward  arguments  of  great 
length  to  prove  that  he  was  "perfectly  at  liberty  not  to  keep  faith 
trifh  a  heretic"  and  that  the  council,  being  above  the  emperor, 
"could  free  him  from  his  word."  Thus  they  prevailed. 

Enfeebled  by  illness  and  imprisonment-*-for  the  damp, 
foul  air  of  his  dungeon  had  brought  on  a  fever  which  nearly 
ended  his  life — Huss  was  at  last  brought  before  the  council. 
Loaded  with  chains  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  emperor, 
whose  honor  and  good  faith  had  been  pledged  to  protect  him. 
During  his  long  trial  he  firmly  maintained  the  truth,  and 
in  the  presence  of  the  assembled  dignitaries  of  Church  and 
State,  he  uttered  a  solemn  and  faithful  protest  against  the 
corruptions  of  the  hierarchy.  When  required  to  choose 
whether  he  would  recant  his  doctrines  or  suffer  death,  he 
accepted  the  martyr's  fate. 

The  grace  of  God  sustained  him.  During  the  weeks  of 
suffering  that  passed  before  his  final  sentence,  Heaven's 
peace  filled  his  soul.  "I  write  this  letter,"  he  said  to  a 
friend,  "  in  prison,  and  with  my  fettered  hand,  expecting  my 
sentence  of  death  to-morrow.  .  .  .  When,  with  the  as- 
sistance of  Jesus  Christ,  we  shall  meet  again  in  the  delicious 
peace  of  the  future  life,  you  will  learn  how  merciful  God  has 
shown  himself  toward  me — how  effectually  he  has  supported 
me  in  the  midst  of  my  temptations  and  trials." 

In  the  gloom  of  his  dungeon  he  foresaw  the  triumph  of 


108  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


tin1  true  faith.  Returning  in  his  dreams  to  the  chapel  at 
Prague  where  he  had  preached  the  gospel,  he  saw  the  pope 
and  his  bishops  effacing  the  pictures  of  Christ  which  he  had 
painted  on  its  walls.  He  was  deeply  troubled  at  the  sight ; 
but  the  next  day  his  grief  was  changed  to  joy,  as  he  beheld 
many  artists  come  to  replace  the  figures  in  greater  numbers 
and  brighter  colors.  Their  work  ended,  the  painters  ex- 
claimed to  the  crowd  gathered  eagerly  about  them,  "  Now 
let  the  popes  and  bishops  come !  They  shall  never  efface 
them  more!"  Said  the  reformer,  as  he  related  his  dream, 
"  I  am  certain  that  the  image  of  Christ  will  never  be  effaced. 
They  have  wished  to  destroy  it,  but  it  will  be  imprinted 
anew  on  the  hearts  of  men  by  much  better  preachers  than 
myself." 

For  the  last  time,  Huss  was  brought  before  the  council. 
It  was  a  vast  and  brilliant  assembly, — the  emperor,  the 
princes  of  the  empire,  the  royal  deputies,  the  cardinals,  bish- 
ops, and  priests,  and  an  immense  crowd  who  had  come  as 
spectators  of  the  events  of  the  day.  From  all  parts  of  Chris- 
tendom had  been  gathered  the  witnesses  of  this  first  great 
sacrifice  in  the  long  struggle  by  which  liberty  of  conscience 
was  to  be  secured. 

Being  called  upon  for  his  final  decision,  Huss  declared 
his  refusal  to  abjure,  and  fixing  his  penetrating  glance  upon 
the  monarch  whose  plighted  word  had  been  so  shamelessly 
violated,  he  declared  that  of  his  own  free  will*  he  had  ap- 
peared before  the  council,  "  un4er  the  public  faith  and  pro- 
tection of  the  emperor  here  present."  A  deep  flush  crim- 
soned the  face  of  Sigisrnund  as  the  eyes  of  all  in  the  assembly 
turned  upon  him. 

Sentence  having  been  pronounced,  the  ceremony  of  degra- 
dation began.  The  bishops  clothed  their  prisoner  in  the 
sacerdotal  habit,  and  as  he  took  the  priestly  robe,  he  said, 
'•Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  was  covered  with  a  white  robe  by 
way  of  insult,  when  Herod  had  him  conducted  before  Pilate." 
Being  again  exhorted  to  retract,  he  replied,  turning  toward 


H US 'S  AND  JEROME. 


109 


the  people,  "  With  what  face,  then,  should  .  I  behold  the 
heavens?  How  should  I  look  on  those  multitudes  of  men 
to  whom  I  have  preached  the  pure  gospel?  No;  I  esteem 
their  salvation  more  than  this  poor  body,  now  appointed 
unto  death."  The  vestments  were  removed  one  by  one,  each 
bishop  pronouncing  a  curse  as  he  performed  his  part  of  the 
ceremony.  Finally  a  crown  or  mitre,  on  which  were  painted 
frightful  figures  of  demons,  and  bearing  the  inscription, 
"The  Arch-Heretic,"  was  placed  upon  his  head.  "Most  joy- 
fully," he  said,  "will  I  wear  this  crown  of  shame  for  thy 
sake,  0  Lord  Jesus,  who  for  me  didst  wear  a  crown  of  thorns." 

When  he  was  thus  arrayed,  the  prelates  devoted  his  soul 
to  Satan.  Huss,  looking  heavenward,  exclaimed, "  I  do  com- 
mend my  spirit  into  thy  hands,  0  Lord  Jesus,  for  thou  hast 
redeemed  me." 

He  was  now  delivered  up  to  the  secular  authorities,  and 
led  away  to  the  place  of  execution.  An  immense  proces- 
sion followed,  hundreds  of  men  at  arms,  priests  and  bishops 
in  their  costly  robes,  and  the  inhabitants  of  Constance. 
When  he  had  been  fastened  to  the  stake,  and  all  was  ready 
for  the  fire  to  be  lighted,  the  martyr  was  once  more  exhorted 
to  save  himself  by  renouncing  his  errors.  "  What  errors," 
said  Huss,  "shall  I  renounce?  I  know  myself  guilty  of 
none.  I  call  God  to  witness  that  all  that  I  have  written  or 
preached  has  been  with  the  view  of  rescuing  souls  from  sin 
and  perdition;  and,  therefore,  most  joyfully  will  I  confirm 
with  my  blood  that  truth  which  I  have  written  and 
preached." 

When  the  flames  kindled  about  him,  he  began  to  sing, 
"  Jesus,  thou  Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me,"  and  so  con- 
tinued till  his  voice  was  silenced  forever. 

Even  his  enemies  were  struck  with  his  heroic  bearing. 
A  zealous  papist,  describing  the  martyrdom  of  Huss,  and  of 
Jerome,  who  died  soon  after,  said:  "Both  bor.e  themselves 
with  constant  mind  when  their  last  hour  approached.  They 
prepared  for  the  fire  as  if  they  were  going  to  a  marriage 


110  TEE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

feast.  They  uttered  no  cry  of  pain.  When  the  flames  rose, 
they  began  to  sing  hymns;  and  scarce  could  the  vehemence 
of  the  fire  stop  their  singing." 

When  the  body  of  Huss  had  been  wholly  consumed,  his 
ashes,  with  the  soil  upon  which  they  rested,  were  gathered  up 
and  cast  into  the  Rhine,  and  thus  borne  onward  to  the  ocean. 
His  persecutors  vainly  imagined  that  they  had  rooted  out 
the  truths  he  preached.  Little  did  they  dream  that  the  ashes 
that  day  borne  away  to  the  sea  were  to  be  as  seed  scattered  in 
all  the  countries  of  the  earth ;  that  in  lands  yet  unknown  it 
would  yield  abundant  fruit  in  witnesses  for  the  truth.  The 
voice  which  had  spoken  in  the  council  hall  of  Constance  had 
wakened  echoes  that  would  be  heard  through  all  coming 
ages.  Huss  was  no  more,  but  the  truths  for  which  he  died 
could  never  perish.  His  example  of  faith  and  constancy 
would  encourage  multitudes  to  stand  firm  for  the  truth,  in 
the  face  of  torture  and  death.  His  execution  had  exhibited 
to  the  whole  world  the  perfidious  cruelty  of  Rome.  The 
enemies  of  truth,  though  they  knew  it  not,  had  been  further- 
ing the  cause  which  they  vainly  sought  to  destroy. 

Yet  another  stake  was  to  be  set  up  at  Constance.  The 
blood  of  another  witness  must  testify  for  the  truth.  Jerome, 
upon  bidding  farewell  to  Huss  on  his  departure  for  the 
council,  had  exhorted  him  to  courage  and  firmness,  declaring 
that  if  he  should  fall  into  any  peril,  he  himself  would  fly  to 
his  assistance.  Upon  hearing  of  the  reformer's  imprison- 
ment, the  faithful  disciple  immediately  prepared  to  fulfill  his 
promise.  Without  a  safe-conduct  he  set  out,  with  a  single 
companion,  for  Constance.  On  arriving  there  he  was  con- 
vinced that  he  had  only  exposed  himself  to  peril,  without 
the  possibility  of  doing  anything  for  the  deliverance  of  Huss. 
He  fled  from  the  city,  but  was  arrested  on  the  homeward 
journey,  and  brought  back  loaded  with  fetters,  and  under 
the  custody  of  a  band  of  soldiers.  At  his  first  appearance 
before  the  council,  his  attempts  to  reply  to  the  accusations 
brought  against  him  were  met  with  shouts,  "  To  the  flames 


AND  JEROME.  Ill 


with  him!  to  the  flames!  "  He  was  thrown  into  a  dungeon, 
chained  in  a  position  which  caused  him  great  suffering,  and 
fed  on  bread  and  water. 

After  some  months  the  cruelties  of  his  imprisonment 
brought  upon  Jerome  an  illness  that  threatened  his  life,  and 
his  enemies,  fearing  that  he  might  escape  them,  treated  him 
with  less  severity,  though  he  remained  in  prison  for  one 
year.  The  death  of  Huss  had  not  resulted  as  the  papists  had 
hoped.  The  violation  of  his  safe-conduct  had  roused  a  storm 
of  indignation,  and  as  the  safer  course  the  council  deter- 
mined, instead  of  burning  Jerome,  to  force  him,  if  possible, 
to  retract.  He  was  brought  before  the  assembly,  and  offered 
the  alternative  to  recant  or  to  die  at  the  stake.  Death  at  the 
beginning  of  his  imprisonment  would  have  been  a  mercy, 
in  comparison  with  the  terrible  sufferings  which  he  had 
undergone;  but  now,  weakened  by  illness,  by  the  rigors  of 
his.  prison-house,  and  the  torture  of  anxiety  and  suspense, 
separated  from  his  friends,  and  disheartened  by  the  death 
of  Huss,  Jerome's  fortitude  gave  way,  and  he  consented  to 
submit  to  the  council.  He  pledged  himself  to  adhere  to 
the  Catholic  faith,  and  accepted  the  action  of  the  council  in 
condemning  the  doctrines  of  WyclifFe  and  Huss,  excepting, 
however,  the  "holy  truths"  which  they  had  taught. 

By  this  expedient,  Jerome  endeavored  to  silence  the  voice 
of-  conscience  and  escape  his  doom.  But  in  the  solitude  of 
his  dungeon  he  saw  more  clearly  what  he  had  done.  He 
thought  of  the  courage  and  fidelity  of  Huss,  and  in  contrast 
pondered  upon  his  own  denial  of  the  truth.  He  thought  of 
the  divine  Master  whom  he  had  pledged  himself  to  serve, 
and  who  for  his  sake  endured  the  death  of  the  cross.  Before 
his  retraction  he  had  found  comfort,  amid  all  his  sufferings, 
in  the  assurance  of  God's  favor ;  but  now  remorse  and  doubt 
tortured  his  soul.  He  knew  that  still  other  retractions  must 
be  made  before  he  could  be  at  peace  with  Rome.  The  path 
upon  which  he  was  entering  could  end  only  in  complete 
apostasy.  His  resolution  was  taken:  to  escape  a  brief  period 
of  suffering  he  would  not  deny  his  Lord. 


112  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Soon  he  was  again  brought  before  the  council.  His  sub- 
mission had  not  satisfied  his  judges.  Their  thirst  for  blood, 
whetted  by  the  death  of  Huss,  clamored  for  fresh  victims. 
Only  by  an  unreserved  surrender  of  the  truth  could  Jerome 
preserve  his  life.  But  he  had  determined  to  avow  his  faith, 
and  follow  his  brother  martyr  to  the  flames. 

He  renounced  his  former  recantation,  and,  as  a  dying 
man,  solemnly  required  an  opportunity  to  make  his  defense. 
Fearing  the  effect  of  his  words,  the  prelates  insisted  that  he 
should  merely  affirm  or  deny  the  truth  of  the  charges 
brought  against  him.  Jerome  protested  against  such  cruelty 
and  injustice.  "You  have  held  me  shut  up  three  hundred 
and  forty  days  in  a  frightful  prison,"  he  said,  "  in  the  midst 
of  filth,  noisomeness,  stench,  and  the  utmost  want  of  every- 
thing. You  then  bring  me  out  before  you,  and  lending  an 
ear  to  my  mortal  enemies,  you  refuse  to  hear  me.  If  you  be 
really  wise  men,  and  the  lights  of  the  world,  take  care  not 
to  sin  against  justice.  As  for  me,  I  am  only  a  feeble  mortal; 
my  life  is  but  of  little  importance;  and  when  I  exhort  you 
not  to  deliver  an  unjust  sentence,  I  speak  less  for  myself 
than  for  you." 

His  request  was  finally  granted.  In  the  presence  of  his 
judges,  Jerome  kneeled  down  and  prayed  that  the  Divine 
Spirit  might  control  his  thoughts  and  words,  that  he  might 
speak  nothing  contrary  to  the  truth  or  unworthy  of  his 
Master.  To  him  that  day  was  fulfilled  the  promise  of  God 
to  the  first  disciples :  "  Ye  shall  be  brought  before  governors 
and  kings  for  my  sake;  .  .  .  but  when  they  deliver  you 
up,  take  no  thought  how  or  what  ye  shall  speak;  for  it 
shall  be  given  you  in  that  same  hour  what  ye  shall  speak; 
for  it  is  not  ye  that  speak,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  Father 
which  speak eth  in  you."1  The  words  of  Jerome  excited 
astonishment  and  admiration,  even  in  his  enemies.  For  a 
whole  year  he  had  been  immured  in  a  dungeon,  unable  to 
read  or  even  to  see,  in  great  physical  suffering  and  mental 
anxiety.  Yet  his  arguments  were  presented  with  as  much 

10:18-20. 


BUSS  AND  JEROME.  113 

clearness  and  power  as  if  he  had  had  undisturbed  opportu- 
nity for  study.  He  pointed  his  hearers  to  the  long  line  of 
holy  men  who  had  been  condemned  by  unjust  judges.  In 
almost  every  generation  have  been  those  who,  while  seeking 
to  elevate  the  people  of  their  time,  have  been  reproached 
and  cast  out,  but  who  in  later  times  have  been  shown  to  be 
deserving  of  honor.  Christ  himself  was  condemned  as  a 
malefactor  at  an  unrighteous  tribunal. 

At  his  retraction,  Jerome  had  assented  to  the  justice  of  the 
sentence  condemning  Huss;  he  now  declared  his  repentance, 
and  bore  witness  to  the  innocence  and  holiness  of  the  mar- 
tyr. "I  knew  John  Huss  from  his  childhood,"  he  said. 
"He  was  a  most  excellent  man,  just  and  holy;  he  was  con- 
demned, notwithstanding  his  innocence.  ...  I  also — I 
am  ready  to  die.  I  will  not  recoil  before  the  torments  that 
are  prepared  for  me  by  my  enemies  and  false  witnesses,  who 
will  one  day  have  to  render  an  account  of  their  impostures 
before  the  great  God,  whom  nothing  can  deceive." 

In  self-reproach  for  his  own  denial  of  the  truth,  Jerome 
continued :  "  Of  all  the  sins  that  I  have  committed  since  my 
youth,  none  weigh  so  heavily  upon  my  mind,  and  cause  me 
such  poignant  remorse,  as  that  which  I  committed  in  this 
fatal  place,  when  I  approved  of  the  iniquitous  sentence 
rendered  against  Wycliffe,  and  the  holy  martyr,  John  Huss, 
my  master.  Yes,  I  confess  it  from  my  heart ;  and  declare 
with  horror  that  I  disgracefully  quailed,  when,  through  a 
dread  of  death,  I  condemned  their  doctrines.  I  therefore 
supplicate  Almighty  God  to  deign  to  pardon  me  my  sins, 
and  this  one  in  particular,  the  most  heinous  of  all."  Point- 
ing to  his  judges,  he  said  firmly:  "  You  condemned  Wycliffe 
and  Huss,  not  for  having  shaken  the  doctrine  of  the  church, 
but  simply  because  they  branded  with  reprobation  the  scan- 
dals of  the  clergy, — their  pomp,  their  pride,  and  all  the  vices 
of  the  prelates  and  priests.  The  things  that  they  have  af- 
firmed, and  which  are  irrefutable.  I  also  think  and  declare 
like  them." 


114  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


His  words  were  interrupted.  The  prelates,  trembling 
with  rage,  cried  out,  "What  need  have  we  of  further  proof?" 
"Away  with  the  most  obstinate  of  heretics!" 

Unmoved  by  the  tempest,  Jerome  exclaimed:  "What!  do 
you  suppose  that  I  fear  to  die?  You  have  held  me  a  whole 
year  in  a  frightful  dungeon,  more  horrible  than  death  itself. 
You  have  treated  me  more  cruelly  than  a  Turk,  Jew,  or 
pagan,  and  my  flesh  has  literally  rotted  off  my  bones  alive; 
and  yet  I  make  no  complaint,  for  lamentation  ill  becomes  a 
man  of  heart  and  spirit;  but  I  cannot  but  express  my  aston- 
ishment at  such  great  barbarity  toward  a  Christian." 

Again  the  storm  of  rage  burst  out;  and  Jerome  was  hur- 
ried away  to  prison.  Yet  there  were  some  in  the  assembly 
upon  whom  his  words  had  made  a  deep  impression,  and 
who  desired  to  save  his  life.  He  was  visited  by  dignitaries 
of  the  church,  and  urged  to  submit  himself  to  the  council. 
The  most  brilliant  prospects  were  presented  before  him  as 
the  reward  of  renouncing  his  opposition  to  Rome.  But  like 
his  Master,  when  offered  the  glory  of  the  world,  Jerome  re- 
mained steadfast. 

"  Prove  to  me  from  the  Holy  Writings  that  I  am  in  error," 
he  said,  "and  I  will  abjure  it." 

"The  Holy  Writings!"  exclaimed  one  of  his  tempters,  "is 
everything  to  be  judged  by  them?  Who  can  understand 
them  until  the  church  has  interpreted  them?" 

"Are  the  traditions  of  men  more  worthy  of  faith  than  the 
gospel  of  our  Saviour?"  replied  Jerome.  "Paul  did  not 
exhort  those  to  whom  he  wrote  to  listen  to  the  traditions  of 
men,  but  said,  'Search  the  Scriptures.'" 

"  Heretic,"  was  the  response,  "  I  repent  having  pleaded  so 
long  with  you.  I  see  that  you  are  urged  on  by  the  devil." 

Erelong  sentence  of  condemnation  was  passed  upon  him. 
He  was  led  out  to  the  same  spot  upon  which  Huss  had 
yielded  up  his  life.  He  went  singing  on  his  way,  his  coun- 
tenance lighted  up  with  joy  and  peace.  His  gaze  was  fixed 
upon  Christ,  and  to  him  death  had  lost  its  terrors.  When 


HVSS  AND  JEROME.  115 

the  executioner,  about  to  kindle  the  pile,  stepped  behind 
him,  the  mart}-r  exclaimed,  "Come  forward  boldly;  apply 
the  fire  before  my  face.  Had  I  been  afraid,  I  should  not  be 
here." 

His  last  words,  uttered  as  the  flames  rose  about  him,  were 
a  prayer.  "  Lord,  Almighty  Father,"  he  cried,  have  pity 
on  me,  and  pardon  me  my  sins,  for  thou  knowest  that  I  have 
always  loved  thy  truth."  His  voice  ceased,  but  his  lips 
continued  to  move  in  prayer. 

When  the  fire  had  done  its  work,  the  ashes  of  the  mar- 
tyr, with  the  earth  upon  which  they  rested,  were  gathered 
up,  and,  like  those  of  Huss,  were  thrown  into  the  Rhine. 
So  >perished  God's  faithful  light-bearers.  But  the  light  of 
the  truths  which  they  proclaimed, — the  light  of  their  heroic 
example, — could  not  be  extinguished.  As  well  might  men 
attempt  to  turn  back  the  sun  in  its  course  as  to  prevent  the 
dawning  of  that  day  which  was  even  then  breaking  upon 
the  world. 

The  execution  of  Huss  had  kindled  a  flame  of  indigna- 
tion and  horror  in  Bohemia.  It  was  felt  by  the  whole  nation 
that  he  had  fallen  a  prey  to  the  malice  of  the  priests  and 
the  treachery  of  the  emperor.  He  was  declared  to  have  been 
a  faithful  teacher  of  the  truth,  and  the  council  that  decreed 
his  death  was  charged  with  the  guilt  of  murder.  His  doc- 
trines now  attracted  greater  attention  than  ever  before.  By 
the  papal  edicts  the  writings  of  WyclifFe  had  been  con- 
demned to  the  flames.  But  those  that  had  escaped  destruc- 
tion were  now  brought  out  from  their  hiding-places,  and 
studied  in  connection  with  the  Bible,  or  such  parts  of  it  as 
the  people  could  obtain,  and  many  were  thus  led  to  accept 
the  reformed  faith. 

The  murderers  of  Huss  did  not  stand  quietly  by  and  wit- 
ness the  triumph  of  his  cause.  .The  pope  and  the  emperor 
united  to  crush  out  the  movement,  and  the  armies  of  Sigis- 
mund  were  hurled  upon  Bohemia. 

But  a  deliverer  was  raised  up.     Ziska,  who  soon  after  the 


116  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

opening  of  the  war  became  totally  blind,  yet  who  was  one  of 
the  ablest  generals  of  his  age,  was  the  leader  of  the  Bohe- 
M linns.  Trusting  in.  the  help  of  God  and  the  righteousness 
of  their  cause,  that  people  withstood  the  mightiest  armies 
that  could  be  brought  against  them.  Again  and  again  the 
emperor,  raising  fresh  armies,  invaded  Bohemia,  to  be  igno- 
miniously  repulsed.  The  Hussites  were  raised  above  the 
fenr  of  death,  anJ  nothing  could  stand  against  them.  A 
few  years  after  the  opening  of  the  war,  the  brave  Ziska 
died;  but  his  place  was  filled  by  Procopius,  who  was  an 
equally  brave  and  skillful  general,  and  in  some  respects  a 
more  able  leader. 

The  enemies  of  the  Bohemians,  knowing  that  the  blind 
warrior  was  dead,  deemed  the  opportunity  favorable  for 
recovering  all  that  they  had  lost.  The  pope  now  proclaimed 
a  crusade  against  the  Hussites,  and  again  an  immense  force 
was  precipitated  upon  Bohemia,  but  only  to  suffer  terrible 
defeat.  Another  crusade  was  proclaimed.  In  all  the  papal 
countries  of  Europe,  men,  money,  and  munitions  of  war 
were  raised.  Multitudes  flocked  to  the  papal  standard, 
assured  that  at  last  an  end  would  be  made  of  the  Hussite 
heretics.  Confident  of  victory,  the  vast  force  entered  Bohe- 
mia. The  people  rallied  to  repel  them.  The  two  armies 
approached  each  other,  until  only  a  river  lay  between  them. 
The  allies  were  greatly  superior  in  numbers,  yet  instead  of 
advancing  boldly  to  attack  the  Hussites,  they  stood  as  if 
spell-bound,  silently  gazing  upon  them.  Then  suddenly  a 
mysterious  terror  fell  upon  the  host.  Without  striking  a 
blow  that  mighty  force  broke  and  scattered,  as  if  dispelled 
by  nn  unseen  power.  Great  numbers  were  slaughtered  by 
the  Hussite  army,  which  pursued  the  fugitives,  and  an  im- 
mense booty  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors,  so  that  the 
war,  instead  of  impoverishing,  enriched  the  Bohemians. 

A  few  years  later,  under  n  ne\v  pope,  still  another  crusade 
w.-is  set  on  foot.  As  before,  men  and  means  were  drawn 
from  all  the  papist  countries  of  Europe.  Great  were  the 


H&SS  AND  JEROME.  117 

inducements  held  out  to  those  who  should  engage  in  this  per- 
ilous enterprise.  Full  forgiveness  of  the  most  heinous  crimes 
was  insured  to  every  crusader.  All  who  died  in  the  war 
were  promised  a  rich  reward  in  Heaven,  and  those  who  sur- 
vived were  to  reap  honor  and  riches  on  the  field  of  battle. 
Again  a  vast  army  was  collected,  and  crossing  the  frontier 
they  entered  Bohemia.  The  Hussite  forces  fell  back  before 
them,  thus  drawing  the  invaders  farther  and  farther  into 
the  country,  and  leading  them  to  count  the  victory  already 
won.  At  last  the  army  of  Procopius  made  a  stand,  and, 
turning  upon  the  foe,  advanced  to  give  them  battle.  The 
crusaders,  now  discovering  their  mistake,  lay  in  their  encamp- 
ment awaiting  the  onset.  As  the  sound  of  the  approaching 
force  was  heard,  even  before  the  Hussites  were  in  sight,  a 
panic  again  fell  upon  the  crusaders.  Princes,  generals,  and 
common  soldiers,  casting  away  their  armor,  fled  in  all  direc- 
tions. In  vain  the  papal  legate,  who  was  the  leader  of  the 
invasion,  endeavored  to  rally  his  terrified  and  disorganized 
forces.  Despite  his  utmost  endeavors,  he  himself  was  swept 
along  in  the  tide  of  fugitives.  The  rout  was  complete,  and 
again  an  immense  booty  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors. 

Thus  the  second  time  a  vast  army,  sent  forth  by  the  most 
powerful  nations  of  Europe,  a  host  of  brave,  warlike  men, 
trained  and  equipped  for  battle,  fled  without  a  blow,  before 
the  defenders  of  a  small  and  hitherto  feeble  nation.  Here 
was  a  manifestation  of  divine  power.  The  invaders  were 
smitten  with  a  supernatural  terror.  He  who  overthrew  the 
hosts  of  Pharaoh  in  the  Red  Sea,  who  put  to  flight  the  armies 
of  Midian  before  Gideon  and  his  three  hundred,  who  in  one 
night  laid  low  the  forces  of  the  proud  Assyrian,  had  again 
stretched  out  his  hand  to  wither  the  power  of  the  oppressor. 
"There  were  they  in  great  fear,  where  no  fear  was;  for  God 
hath  scattered  the  bones  of  him  that  encampeth  against  thee; 
thou  hast  put  them*  to  shame,  because  God  hath  despised 
them."1 

The  papal  leaders,  despairing  of  conquering  by  force,  at 
10  !  Pa.  53: 5. 


118  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

last  resorted  to  diplomacy.  A  compromise  was  entered  into, 
that  while  professing  to  grant  to  the  Bohemians  freedom  of 
conscience,  really  betrayed  them  into  the  power  of  Rome. 
The  Bohemians  had  specified  four  points  as  the  condition  of 
peace  with  Rome :  The  free  preaching  of  the  Bible ;  the  right 
of  the  whole  church  to  both  the  bread  and  the  wine  in  the 
communion,  and  the  use  of  the  mother-tongue  in  divine 
worship;  the  exclusion  of  the  clergy  from  all  secular  offices 
and  authority;  and  in  cases  of  crime,  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
civil  courts  over  clergy  and  laity  alike.  The  papal  author- 
ities at  last  agreed  to  accept  the  'four  articles,  stipulating, 
however,  that  the  right  of  explaining  them,  of  deciding  upon 
their  exact  meaning,  should  belong  to  the  church.  On  this 
basis  a  treaty  was  entered  into,  and  Rome  gained  by  dissim- 
ulation and  fraud  what  she  had  failed  to  gain  by  conflict; 
for,  placing  her  own  interpretation  upon  the  Hussite  articles, 
as  upon  the  Bible,  she  could  pervert  their  meaning  to  suit 
her  own  purposes. 

A  large  class  in  Bohemia,  seeing  that  it  betrayed  their 
liberties,  could  not  consent  to  the  compact.  Dissensions  and 
divisions  arose,  leading  to  strife  and  bloodshed  among  them- 
selves. In  this  strife  the  noble  Procopius  fell,  and  the  lib- 
erties of  Bohemia  perished. 

Sigismund,  the  betrayer  of  Huss  and  Jerome,  now  became 
king  of  Bohemia,  and,  regardless  of  his  oath  to  support  the 
rights  of  the  Bohemians,  he  proceeded  to  establish  popery. 
But  he  had  gained  little  by  his  subservience  to  Rome.  For 
twenty  years  his  life  had  been  filled  with  labors  and  perils. 
His  armies  had  been  wasted  and  his  treasuries  drained  by  a 
long  and  fruitless  struggle;  and  now,  after  reigning  one 
year,  he  died,  leaving  his  kingdom  on  the  brink  of  civil  war, 
and  bequeathing  to  posterity  a  name  branded  with  infamy. 

Tumults,  strife,  and  bloodshed  were  protracted.  Again 
foreign  armies  invaded  Bohemia,  and-  internal  dissension 
continued  to  distract  the  nation.  Those  who  remained 
laithlul  to  the  gospel  were  subjected  to  a  bloody  persecution. 


HUSS  AND  JEROME.  119 

As  their  former  brethren,  entering  into  compact  with  Rome, 
imbibed  her  errors,  those  who  adhered  to  the  ancient  faith 
had  formed  themselves  into  a  distinct  church,  taking  the 
name  of  "United  Brethren."  This  act  drew  upon  them 
maledictions  from  all  classes.  Yet  their  firmness  was  un- 
shaken. Forced  to  find  refuge  in  the  woods  and  caves,  they 
still  assembled  to  read  God's  Word  and  unite  in  his  worship. 

Through  messengers  secretly  sent  out  into  different  coun- 
tries, they  learned  that  here  and  there  were  isolated  con- 
fessors of  the  truth — a  few  in  this  city  and  a  few  in  that, 
the  object,  like  themselves,  of  persecution;  and  that  amid 
the  mountains  of  the  Alps  was  an  ancient  church,  resting 
on  the  foundations  of  Scripture.  This  intelligence  was  re- 
ceived with  great  joy,  and  a  correspondence  was  opened 
with  the  Waldensian  Christians. 

Steadfast  to  the  gospel,  the  Bohemians  waited  through  the 
night  of  their  persecution,  in  the  darkest  hour  still  turning 
their  eyes  toward  the  horizon  like  men  who  watch  for  the 
morning.  "Their  lot  was  cast  in  evil  days,  but  they  re- 
membered the  words  first  uttered  by  Huss,  and  repeated  by 
Jerome,  that  a  century  must  revolve  before  the  day  should 
break.  These  were  to  the  Hussites  what  the  words  of  Joseph 
were  to  the  tribes  in  the  house  of  bondage:  'I  die,  and  God 
will  surely  visit  you,  and  bring  you  out.'"  About  the  year 
1470  persecution  ceased,  and  there  followed  a  period  of  com- 
parative prosperity.  When  "the  end  of  the  century  arrived, 
it  found  two  hundred  churches  of  the  'United  Brethren'  in 
Bohemia  and  Moravia.  "So  goodly  was  the  remnant  which, 
escaping  the  destructive  fury  of  fire  and  sworjl,  was  per- 
mitted to  see  the  dawning  of  that  day  which  Huss  had  fore- 
told." 


CHAPTER   VII. 


LUTHER'S  SEPARATION  FROM  ROME. 

FOREMOST  among  those  who  were  called  to  lead  the  church 
from  the  darkness  of  popery  into  the  light  of  a  purer  faith, 
stood  Martin  Luther.  Zealous,  ardent,  and  devoted,  know- 
ing no  fear  but  the  fear  of  God,  and  acknowledging  no  foun- 
dation for  religious  faith  but  the  Holy  Scriptures,  Luther 
was  the  man  for  his  time;  through  him,  God  accomplished 
a  great  work  for  the  reformation  of  the  church  and  the  en- 
lightenment of  the  world. 

Like  the  first  heralds  of  the  gospel,  Luther  sprung  from 
the  ranks  of  poverty.  His  early  years  were  spent  in  the 
humble  home  of  a  German  peasant.  By  daily  toil  as  a 
miner,  his  father  earned  the  means  for  his  education.  He 
intended  him  for  a  lawyer;  but  God  purposed  to  make  him 
a  builder  in  the  great  temple  that  was  rising  so  slowly 
through  the  centuries.  Hardship,  privation,  and  severe 
discipline  were  the  school  in  which  Infinite  Wisdom  pre- 
pared Luther  for  the  important  mission  of  his  life. 

Luther's  father  was  a  man  of  strong  and  active  mind, 
and  great  force  of  character,  honest,  resolute,  and  straight- 
forward. He  was  true  to  his  convictions  of  duty,  lot  the 
consequences  be' what  they  might.  His  sterling  good  sense 
led  him  to  regard  the  monastic-  system  with  distrust.  He 
was  highly  displeased  when  Luther,  without  his  eoiisent, 
entered  a  monastery;  ;m<l  it  was  two  years  before  the  lather 
was  reconcile*  1  to  his  sou,  and  even  then  his  opinions  re- 
mained the  same. 

Luther's  parents  bestowed  great  eare  upon  the  education 
and  training  of  their  children.  They  endeavored  to  instruct 

(120) 


CALYIN. 
MKLAXPTHOX. 


LUTHER. 


FARF.L. 


Copyrighted  1890. 


FREDERICK    OF    SAXOXY. 


LUTHER'S  SEPARATION  FROM  HOME.          121 

them  in  the  knowledge  of  God  and  the  practice  of  Christian 
virtues.  The  father's  prayer  often  ascended  in  the  hearing 
of  his  son,  that  the  child  might  remember  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  one  day  aid  in  the  advancement  of  his  truth. 
Every  advantage  for  moral  or  intellectual  culture  which 
their  life  of  toil  permitted  them  to  enjoy,  was  eagerly  ir.i- 
proved  by  these  parents.  Their  efforts  were  earnest  ana 
persevering  to  prepare  their  children  for  a  life  of  piety  and 
usefulness.  With  their  firmness  and  strength  of  character 
they  sometimes  exercised  too  great  severity ;  but  the  reformer 
himself,  though  conscious  that  in  some  respects  they  had 
erred,  found  in  their  discipline  more  to  approve  than  to  con- 
demn. 

At  school,  where  he  was  sent  at  an  early  age,  Luther  was 
treated  with  harshness  and  even  violence.  So  great  was  the 
poverty  of  his  parents,  that  upon  going  from  home  to  school 
in  another  town  he  was  for  a  time  obliged  to  obtain  his  food 
by  singing  from  door  to  door,  and  he  often  suffered  from 
hunger.  The  gloomy,  superstitious  ideas  of  religion  then 
prevailing  filled  him  with  fear.  He  would  lie  down  at 
night  with  a  sorrowful  heart,  looking  forward  with  trembling 
to  the  dark  future,  and  in  constant  terror  at  the  thought  of 
God  as  a  stern,  unrelenting  judge,  a  cruel  tyrant,  rather  than 
a  kind  heavenly  Father.  Yet  under  so  many  and  so  great 
discouragements,  Luther  pressed  resolutely  forward  toward 
the  high  standard  of  moral  and  intellectual  excellence  which 
attracted  his  soul. 

He  thirsted  for  knowledge,  and  the  earnest  and  practical 
character  of  his  mind  led  him  to  desire  the  solid  and  useful 
rather  than  the  showy  and  superficial.  When,  at  the  age 
of  eighteen,  he  entered  the  University  of  Erfurt,  his  situa- 
tion was  more  favorable  and  his  prospects  brighter  than  in 
his  earlier  years.  His  parents  having  by  thrift  and  industry 
acquired  a  competence,  they  were  able  to  render  him  all 
needed  assistance.  And  the  influence  of  judicious  friends 
had  somewhat  lessened  the  gloomy  effects  of  his  former 


122  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


training.  He  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  the  best 
authors,  diligently  treasuring  their  most  weighty  thoughts, 
and  making  the  wisdom  of  the  wise  his  own.  Even  under 
the  harsh  discipline  of  his  former  instructors,  he  had  early 
given  promise  of  distinction ;  and  with  favorable  influences 
his  mind  rapidly  developed.  A  retentive  memory,  a  lively 
imagination,  strong  reasoning  powers,  and  untiring  applica- 
tion, soon  placed  him  in  the  foremost  rank  among  his  asso- 
ciates. Intellectual  discipline  ripened  his  understanding,  and 
aroused  an  activity  of  mind  and  a  keenness  of  perception 
that  were  preparing  him  for  the  conflicts  of  his  life. 

The  fear  of  the  Lord  dwelt  in  the  heart  of  Luther,  ena- 
bling him  to  maintain  his  steadfastness  of  purpose,  and  lead- 
ing him  to  deep  humility  before  God.  He  had  an  abiding 
sense  of  his  dependence  upon  divine  aid,  and  he  did  not 
fail  to  begin  each  day  with  prayer,  while  his  heart  was  con- 
tinually breathing  a  petition  for  guidance  and  support.  "  To 
pray  well,"  he  often  said,  "is  the  better  half  of  study." 

While  one  day  examining  the  books  in  the  library  of  the 
university,  Luther  discovered  a  Latin  Bible.  Such  a  book  he 
had  never  before  seen.  He  was  ignorant  even  of  its  exist- 
ence. He  had  heard  portions  of  the  Gospels  and  Epistles, 
which  were  read  to  the  people  at  public  worship,  and  he 
supposed  that  these  were  the  entire  Bible.  Now,  for  the 
first  time,  he  looked  upon  the  whole  of  God's  Word.  With 
mingled  awe  and  wonder  he  turned  the  sacred  pages;  with 
quickened  pulse  and  throbbing  heart  he  read  for  himself  the 
words  of  life,  pausing  now  and  then  to  exclaim,  "  Oh,  if  God 
would  give  me  such  a  book  for  my  own ! "  Angels  of  Heaven 
were  by  his  side,  and  rays  of  light  from  the  throne  of  God 
revealed  the  treasures  of  truth  to  his  understanding.  He 
had  ever  feared  to  offend  God,  but  now  the  deep  conviction 
of  his  condition  as  a  sinner  took  hold  upon  him  as  never 
before. 

An  earnest  desire  to  be  free  from  sin  and  to  find  peace 
with  God,  led  him  at  last  to  enter  a  cloister,  and  devote  him- 


LUTHER'S  SEPARA  TION  FROM  ROMV. 

self  to  a  monastic  life.  Here  he  was  required  to  perform  the 
lowest  drudgery,  and  to  beg  from  house  to  house.  He  was 
at  an  age  when  respect  and  appreciation  are  most  eagerly 
craved,  and  these  menial  offices  were  deeply  mortifying  to 
his  natural  feelings;  but  he  patiently  endured  this  humilia- 
tion, believing  that  it  was  necessary  because  of  his  sins. 

Every  moment  that  could  be  spared  from  his  daily  duties 
he  employed  in  study,  robbing  himself  of  sleep,  and  grudg- 
ing even  the  time  spent  at  his  scanty  meals.  Above  every- 
thing else  he  delighted  in  the  study  of  God's  Word.  He 
had  found  a  Bible  chained  to  the  convent  wall,  and  to  this 
he  often  repaired.  As  his  convictions  of  sin  deepened,  he 
sought  by  his  own  works  to  obtain  pardon  and  peace.  He 
led  a  most  rigorous  life,  endeavoring,  by  fasting,  vigils,  and 
scourgings,  to  subdue  the  evils  of  his  nature,  from  which 
the  monastic  life  had  brought  no  release.  He  shrank  from 
no  sacrifice  by  which  he  might  attain  to  that  purity  of  heart 
which  would  enable  him  to  stand  approved  before  God.  "  I 
was  indeed  a  pious  monk,"  he  afterward  said,  "  and  followed 
the  rules  of  my  order  more  strictly  than  I  can  express.  If 
ever  monk  could  attain  Heaven  by  his  monkish  works,  I 
should  certainly  have  been  entitled  to  it.  If  I  had  continued 
much  longer,  I  should  have  carried  my  mortifications  even  to 
death."  As  the  result  of  this  painful  discipline,  he  lost 
strength,  and  suffered  from  fainting  spasms,  from  the  effects 
of  which  he  never  fully  recovered.  But  with  all  his  efforts, 
his  burdened  soul  found  no  relief.  He  was  at  last  driven  to 
the  verge  of  despair. 

When  it  appeared  to  Luther  that  all  was  lost,  God  raised 
up  a  friend  and  helper  for  him.  The  pious  Staupitz  opened 
the  Word  of  God  to  Luther's  mind,  and  bade  him  look  away 
from  himself;  cease  the  contemplation  of  infinite  punishment 
for  the  violation  of  God's  law,  and  look  to  Jesus,  his  sin- 
pardoning  Saviour.  "  Instead  of  torturing  yourself  on  ac- 
count of  your  sins,  cast  yourself  into  the  arms  of  your  Re- 
deemer. Trust  in  him, — in  the  righteousness  of  his  life, — in 


124  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  atonement  of  his  death.  Listen  to  the  Son  of  God.  He 
became  man  to  give  you  the  assurance  of  divine  favor." 
"  Love  him  who  has  first  loved  you."  Thus  spoke  this  mes- 
senger of  mercy.  His  words  made  a  deep  impression  upon 
Luther's  mind.  After  many  a  struggle  with  long-cherished 
errors,  he  was  enabled  to  grasp  the  truth,  and  peace  came  to 
his  troubled  soul. 

Luther  was  ordained  a  priest,  and  was  called  from  the 
cloister  to  a  professorship  in  the  University  of  Wittenberg. 
Here  he  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  the  Scriptures  in 
the  original  tongues.  He  began  to  lecture  upon  the  Bible; 
and  the  book  of  Psalms,  the  Gospels,  and  the  Epistles  were 
opened  to  the  understanding  of  crowds  of  delighted  listeners. 
Staupitz,  his  friend  and  superior,  urged  him  to  ascend  the 
pulpit,  and  preach  the  Word  of  God.  Luther  hesitated,  feel- 
ing himself  unworthy  to  speak  to  the  people  in  Christ's 
stead.  It  was  only  after  a  long  struggle  that  he  yielded  to 
the  solicitations  of  his  friends.  Already  he  was  mighty  in 
the  Scriptures,  and  the  grace  of  God  rested  upon  him.  His 
eloquence  captivated  his  hearers,  the  clearness  and  power 
with  which  he  presented  the  truth'  convinced  their  under- 
standing, and  his  fervor  touched  their  hearts. 

Luther  was  still  a  true  son  of  the  papal  church,  and  had 
no  thought  that  he  would  ever  be  anything  else.  In  the 
providence  of  God  he  was  led  to  visit  Koine.  He  pursued 
his  journey  on  foot,  lodging  at  the  monasteries  on  the  wray. 
At  a  convent  in  Italy  he  was  filled  with  wonder  at  the 
wealth,  magnificence,  and  luxury  that  he  witnessed.  En- 
dowed with  a  princely  revenue,  the  monks  dwelt  in  splendid 
apartments,  attired  themselves  in  the  richest  and  most  costly 
robes,  and  feasted  at  a  sumptuous  table.  With  painful  mis- 
givings Luther  contrasted  this  scene  with  the  self-denial  and 
hardship  of  his  own  life.  His  mind  was  becoming  perplexed. 

At  last  he  beheld  in  the  distance  the  seven-hilled  city. 
With  deep  emotion  he  prostrated  himself  upon  the  earth, 
exclaiming,  "Holy  Rome,  I  salute  thee!"  He  entered  the 


L  OTHER'S  SEPARA  TION  FR  OM  R  OME.  1 25 

city,  visited  the  churches,  listened  to  the  marvelous  tales 
repeated  by  priests  and  monks,  and  performed  all  the  cere- 
monies required.  Everywhere  he  looked  upon  scenes  that 
filled  him  with  astonishment  and  horror.  He  saw  that 
iniquity  existed  among  all  classes  of  the  clergy.  He  heard 
indecent  jokes  from  prelates,  and  was  filled  with  horror  at 
their  awful  profanity,  even  .during  mass.  As  he  mingled 
with  the  monks  and  citizens,  he  met  dissipation,  debauchery. 
Turn  where  he  would,  in  the  place  of  sanctity  he  found  prof- 
anation. "  It  is  incredible,"  he  wrote,  "  what  sins  and  atroc- 
ities are  committed  in  Rome;  they  must  be  seen  and  heard 
to  be  believed.  So  that  it  is  usual  to  say,  'If  there  be  a  hell, 
Rome  is  built  above  it.  It  is  an  abyss  whence  all  sins  pro- 
ceed.'" 

By  a  recent  decretal,  ah  indulgence  had  been  promised  by 
the  pope  to  all  who  should  ascend  upon  their  knees  "  Pilate's 
staircase,"  said  to  have  been  descended  by  our  Saviour  on 
leaving  the  Roman  judgment-hall,  and  to  have  been  mirac- 
ulously conveyed  from  Jerusalem  to  Rome.  Luther  was 
one  day  devoutly  climbing  these  steps,  when  suddenly  a 
voice  like  thunder  seemed  to  say  to  him,  "The  just  shall 
live  by  faith."1  He  sprung  upon  his  feet,  and  hastened  from 
the  place,  in  shame  and  horror.  That  text  never  lost  its 
power  upon  his  soul.  From  that  time  he  saw  more  clearly 
than  ever  before  the  fallacy  of  trusting  to  human  works  for 
salvation,  and  the  necessity  of  constant  faith  in  the  merits  of 
Christ.  His  eyes  had  been  opened,  and  were  never  again  to 
be  closed,  to  the  delusions  of  the  papacy.  When  he  turned 
his  face  from  Rome,  he  had  turned  away  also  in  heart,  and 
from  that  time  the  separation  grew  wider,  until  he  severed 
all  connection  with  the  papal  church. 

After  his  return  from  Rome,  Luther  received  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  "Wittenberg  the  degree  of  doctor  of  divinity.  Now 
he  was  at  liberty  to  devote  himself,  as  never  before,  to  the 
Scriptures  that  he  loved.  He  had  taken  a  solemn  vow  to 
study  carefully  and  to  preach  with  fidelity  the  Word  of  God, 

.  1  :17. 


126  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

not  the  sayings  and  doctrines  of  the  popes,  all  the  days  of 
his  life.  He  was  no  longer  the  mere  monk  or  professor,  but 
the  authorized  herald  of  the  Bible.  He  had  been  called  as 
a  shepherd  to  feed  the  flock  of  God,  that  were  hungering 
and  thirsting  for  the  truth.  He  firmly  declared  that  Chris- 
tians should  receive  no  other  doctrines  than  those  which 
rest  on  the  authority  of  the  Sacred  Scriptures.  These  words 
struck  at  the  very  foundation  of  papal  supremacy.  They 
contained  the  vital  principle  of  the  Reformation. 

Luther  saw  the  danger  of  exalting  human  theories  above 
the  Word  of  God.  He  fearlessly  attacked  the  speculative 
infidelity  of  the  schoolmen,  and  opposed  the  philosophy  and 
theology  which  had  so  long  held  a  controlling  influence 
upon  the  people.  He  denounced  such  studies  as  not  only 
worthless  but  pernicious,  and  sought  io  turn  the  minds  of 
his  hearers  from  the  sophistries  of  philosophers  and  theolo- 
gians to  the  eternal  truths  set  forth  by  prophets  and  apostles. 

Precious  was  the  message  which  he  bore  to  the  eager 
crowds  that  hung  upon  his  words.  Never  before  had  such 
teachings  fallen  upon  their  ears.  The  glad  tidings  of  a 
Saviour's  love,  the  assurance  of  pardon  and  peace  thiough 
his  atoning  blood,  rejoiced  their  hearts,  and  inspired  within 
them  an  immortal  hope.  At  Wittenberg  a  light  was  kin- 
dled whose  rays  should  extend  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
earth,  and  which  was  to  increase  in  brightness  to  the  close 
of  time, 

1  But  light  and  darkness  cannot  harmonize.  Between  truth 
and  error  there  is  an  irrepressible  conflict.  To  uphold  and 
defend  the  one  is  to  attack  and  overthrow  the  other.  Our 
Saviour  himself  declared,  "I  came  not  to  send  peace,  but  a 
sword."1  Said  Luther,  a  few  years  after  the  opening  of  the 
Reformation,  "  God  does  not  conduct,  but  drives  me  forward. 
I  am  not  master  of  my  own  actions.  I  would  gla'dly  live  in 
ivpose,  but  I  am  thrown  into  the  midst  of  tumults  and  rev- 
olutions." He  was  now  about  to  be  urged  into  the  contest. 

Tin-  Roman  Church  had  mad<3  merchandise  of  the  grace 

1  Matt.  10  :  34. 


L  UTHERS  SEP  A  RA  TION  FR  OM  R  OME.  1 27 

of  God.  The  tables  of  the  money-changers1  were  set  up 
beside  her  altars,  and  the  air  resounded  with  the  shouts  of 
buyers  and  sellers.  Under  the  plea  of  raising  funds  for  the 
erection  of  St.  Peter's  church  at  Rome,  indulgences  for  sin 
were  publicly  offered  for  sale  by  the  authority  of  the  pope. 
By  the  price  of  crime  a  temple  was  to  be  built  up  for  God's 
worship, — the  corner-stone  laid  with  the  wages  of  iniquity. 
But  the  very  means  adopted  for  Rome's  aggrandizement 
provoked  the  deadliest  blow  to  her  power  and  greatness.  It 
was  this  that  aroused  the  most  determined  and  successful  of 
the  enemies  of  popery,  and  led  to  the  battle  which  shook 
the  papal  throne,  and  jostled  the  triple  crown  upon  the 
pontiff's  head. 

The  official  appointed  to  conduct  the  sale  of  indulgences 
in  Germany — Tetzel  by  name — had  been  convicted  of  the 
basest  offenses  against  society  and  against  the  law  of  God; 
but  having  escaped  the  punishment  due  to  his  crimes,  he 
was  employed  to  further  the  mercenary  and  unscrupulous 
projects  of  the  pope.  With  great  effrontery  he  repeated  the 
most  glaring  falsehoods,  and  related  marvelous  tales  to  de- 
ceive an  ignorant,  credulous,  and  superstitious  people.  Had 
they  possessed  the  Word  of  God,  they  would  not  have  been 
thus  deceived.  It  was  to  keep  them  under  the  control  of 
the  papacy,  in  order  to  swell  the  power  and  wealth  of  her 
ambitious  leaders,  that  the  Bible  had  been  withheld  from 
them. 

As  Tetzel  entered  a  town,  a  messenger  went  before  him, 
announcing,  "The  grace  of  God  and  of  the  holy  father  is  at 
your  gates."  And  the  people  welcomed  the  blasphemous 
pretender  as  if  he  were  God  himself  come  down  from  Heaven 
to  them.  The  infamous  traffic  was  set  up  in  the  church,  and 
Tetzel,  ascending  the  pulpit,  extolled  indulgences  as  the  most 
precious  gift  of  God.  He  declared  that  by  virtue  of  his  cer- 
tificates of  pardon,  all  the  sins  which  the  purchaser  should 
afterward  desire  to  commit  would  be  forgiven  him,  and  that 
"even  repentance  was  not  indispensable."  More  than  this, 

iMatt.  21  :12. 


128  THE  GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

he  assured  his  hearers  that  the  indulgences  had  power  to 
save  not  only  the  living  but  the  dead ;  that  the  very  moment 
the  money  should  clink  against  the  bottom  of  his  chest,  the 
soul  in  whose  behalf  it  had  been  paid  would  escape  from 
purgatory  and  make  its  way  to  Heaven. 

When  Simon  Magus  offered  to  purchase  of  the  apostles 
the  power  to  work  miracles,  Peter  answered  him,  "Thy 
money  perish  with  thee,  because  thou  hast  thought  that  the 
gift  of  God  may  be  purchased  with  money." ]  But  Tetzel's 
offer  was  grasped  by  eager  thousands.  Gold  and  silver  flowed 
into  his  treasury.  A  salvation  that  could  be  bought  with 
money  was  more  easily  obtained  than  that  which  requires 
repentance,  faith,  and  diligent  effort  to  resist  and  overcome  sin. 

The  doctrine  of  indulgences  had  been  opposed  by  men  of 
learning  and  piety  in  the  Romish  Church,  and  there  were 
many  who  had  no  faith  in  pretensions  so  contrary  to  both 
reason  and  revelation.  No  prelate  dared  lift  his  voice 
against  this  iniquitous  traffic,  but  the  minds  of  men  were 
becoming  disturbed  and  uneasy,  and  many  eagerly  inquired 
if  God  would  not  work  through  some  instrumentality  for  the 
purification  of  his  church. 

Luther,  though  still  a  papist  of  the  straitest  sort,  was  filled 
with  horror  at  the  blasphemous  assumptions  of  the  indul- 
gence-mongers. Many  of  his  own  congregation  had  purchased 
certificates  of  pardon,  and  they  soon  began  to  come  to  their 
pastor,  confessing  their  various  sins,  and  expecting  absolu- 
tion, not  because  they  were  penitent  and  wished  to  reform, 
but  on  the  ground  of  the  indulgence.  Luther  refused  them 
absolution,  and  warned  them  that  unless  they  should  repent 
and  reform  their  lives,  they  must  perish  in  their  sins.  In 
great  perplexity  they  repaired  to  Tetzel  with  the  complaint 
that  their  confessor  had  refused  his  certificates;  and  some 
boldly  demanded  that  their  money  be  returned  to  them. 
The  friar  was  filled  with  rage.  He  uttered  the  most  terrible 
curses,  caused  fires  to  be  lighted  in  the  public  squares,  and 

1  Acts  8  : 20. 


LUTHER'S  SEPARA  TION  FROM  ROME.          129 

declared  that  he  had  orders  from  the  pope  "  to  burn  the  her- 
etics who  dared  oppose  his  most  holy  indulgences." 

Luther  now  entered  boldly  upon  his  work  as  a  champion 
of  the  truth.  His  voice  was  heard  from  the  pulpit  in  earnest, 
solemn  warning.  He  set  before  the  people  the  offensive  char- 
acter of  sin,  and  taught  them  that  it  is  impossible  for  man, 
by  his  own  works,  to  lessen  its  guilt  or  evade  its  punishment. 
Nothing  but  repentance  toward  God  and  faith  in  Christ  can 
save  the  sinner.  The  grace  of  Christ  cannot  be  purchased ; 
it  is  a  free  gift.  He  counseled  the  people  not  to  buy  the 
indulgences,  but  to  look  in  faith  to  a  crucified  Redeemer.  He 
related  his  own  painful  experience  in  vainly  seeking  by 
humiliation  and  penance  to  secure  salvation,  and  assured 
his  hearers  that  it  was  by  looking  away  from  himself  and 
believing  in  Christ  that  he  found  peace  and  joy. 

As  Tetzel  continued  his  traffic  and  his  impious  pretensions, 
Luther  determined  upon  a  more  effectual  protest  against  these 
crying  abuses.  An  occasion  soon  offered.  The  castle  church 
of  Wittenberg  possessed  many  relics,  which  on  certain  holy 
days  were  exhibited  to  the  people,  and  full  remission  of  sins 
was  granted  to  all  who  then  visited  the  church  and  made 
confession.  Accordingly  on  these  days  the  people  in  great 
numbers  resorted  thither.  One  of  the  most  important  of 
these  occasions,  the  festival  of  "All-Saints,"  was  approaching. 
On  the  preceding  day,  Luther,  joining  the  crowds  that  were 
already  making  their  way  to  the  church,  posted  on  its  door 
a  paper  containing  ninety-five  propositions  against  the  doc- 
trine of  indulgences.  He  declared  his  willingness  to  defend 
these  theses  next  day  at  the  university,  against  all  who  should 
see  fit  to  attack  them. 

His  propositions  attracted  universal  attention.  They  were 
read  and  re-read  and  repeated  in  every  direction.  Great 
excitement  was  created  in  the  university  and  in  the  whole 
city.  By  these  theses  it  was  shown  that  the  power  to  grant 
the  pardon  of  sin,  and  to  remit  its  penalty,  had  never  been  com- 
mitted to  the  pope  or  to  any  other  man.  The  whole  scheme 


130  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

was  a  farce, — an  artifice  to  extort  money  by  playing  upon 
the  superstitions  of  the  people, — a  device  of  Satan  to  destroy 
the  souls  of  all  who  should  trust  to  its  lying  pretensions.  It 
was  also  clearly  shown  that  the  gospel  of  Christ  is  the  most 
valuable  treasure  of  the  church,  and  that  the  grace  of  God; 
therein  revealed,  is  freely  bestowed  upon  all  who  seek  it  by 
repentance  and  faith. 

Luther's  theses  challenged  discussion;  but  no  one  dared 
accept  the  challenge.  The  questions  which  he  proposed  had 
in  a  few  days  spread  through  all  Germany,  and  in  a  few 
weeks  they  had  sounded  throughout  Christendom.  Many 
devoted  Romanists,  who  had  seen  and  lamented  the  terrible 
iniquity  prevailing  in  the  church,  but  had  not  known  how 
to  arrest  its  progress,  read  the  propositions  with  great  joy, 
recognizing  in  them  the  voice  of  God.  They  felt  that  the 
Lord  had  graciously  set  his  hand  to  arrest  the  rapidly  swell- 
ing tide  of  corruption  that  was  issuing  from  the  see  of  Rome. 
Princes  and  magistrates  secretly  rejoiced  that  a  check  was  to 
be  put  upon  the  arrogant  power  which  denied  the  right  of 
appeal  from  its  decisions. 

But  the  sin-loving  and  superstitious  multitudes  were  terri- 
fied as  the  sophistries  that  had  soothed  their  fears  were  swept 
away.  Crafty  ecclesiastics,  interrupted  in  their  work  of  sanc- 
tioning crime,  and  seeing  their  gains  endangered,  were  enraged, 
and  rallied  to  uphold  their  pretensions.  The  reformer  had 
bitter  accusers  to  meet.  Some  charged  him  with  acting 
hastily  and  from  impulse.  Others  accused  him  of  presump- 
tion, declaring  that  he  was  not  directed  of  God,  but  was  act- 
ing from  pride  and  forwardness.  "  Who  does  not  know,"  he 
responded,  "that  one  can  seldom  advance  a  new  idea  with- 
out having  some  appearance  of  pride,  and  without  being 
accused  of  exciting  quarrels?  Why  were  Christ  and  all  the 
martyrs  put  to  death? — Because  they  appeared  proud  despis- 
ers  of  the  wisdom  of  the  times  in  which  they  lived,  and 
because  they  brought  forward  new  truths  without  having 
first  consulted  the  oracles  of  the  old  opinions." 


L UTHER'S  SEPARA TION  FROM  ROME.  131 

Again  he  declared:  "  What  I  am  doing  will  not  be  effected 
by  the  prudence  of  man,  but  by  the  counsel  of  God.  If  the 
work  be  of  God,  who  shall  stop  it?  If  it  be  not,  who  shall 
forward  it?  Not  my  will,  not  theirs,  not  ours,  but  thy  will, 
holy  Father  who  art  in  Heaven ! " 

Though  Luther  had  been  moved  by  the  Spirit  of  God  to 
begin  his  work,  he  was  not  to  carry  it  forward  without  severe 
conflicts.  The  reproaches  of  his  enemies,  their  misrepresen- 
tation of  his  purposes,  and  their  unjust  and  malicious  reflec- 
tions upon  his  character  and  motives,  came  in  upon  him 
like  an  overwhelming  flood;  and  they  were  not  without 
effect.  He  had  felt  confident  that  the  leaders  of  the  people, 
both  in  the  church  and  in  the  schools,  would  gladly  unite 
with  him  in  efforts  for  reform.  Words  of  encouragement 
from  those  in  high  position  had  inspired  him  with  joy  and 
hope.  Already  in  anticipation  he  had  seen  a  brighter  day 
dawning  for  the  church.  But  encouragement  had  changed 
to  reproach  jand  condemnation.  Many  dignitaries,  both  of 
Church  and  State,  were  convicted  of  the  truthfulness  of  his 
theses;  but  they  soon  saw  that  the  acceptance  of  these  truths 
would  involve  great  changes.  To  enlighten  and  reform  the 
people  would  be  virtually  to  undermine  the  authority  of 
Rome,  to  stop  thousands  of  streams  now  flowing  into  her 
treasury,  and  thus  greatly  to  curtail  the  extravagance  and 
luxury  of  the  papal  leaders.  Furthermore,  to  teach  the  peo- 
ple to  think  and  act  as  responsible  beings,  looking  to  Christ 
alone  for  salvation,  would  overthrow  the  pontiff's  throne,  and 
eventually  destroy  their  own  authority.  For  this  reason 
they  refused  the  knowledge  tendered  them  of  God,  and  ar- 
rayed themselves  against  Christ  and  the  truth  by  their 
opposition  to  the  man  whom  he  had  sent  to  enlighten  them. 

Luther  trembled  as  he  looked  upon  himself, — one  man 
opposed  to  the  mightiest  powers  of  earth.  He  sometinies 
doubted  whether  he  had  indeed  been  led  of  God  to  set  him- 
self against  the  authority  of  the  church.  "Who  was  I,"  he 
writes,  "  to  oppose  the  majesty  of  the  pope,  before  whom  the 


132  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

kings  of  the  earth  and  the  whole  world  trembled?"  "No 
one  can  know  what  I  suffered  in  those  first  two  years,  and 
into  what  dejection  and  even  despair  I  was  often  plunged." 
But  lie  was  not  left  to  become  utterly  disheartened.  When 
human  support  failed,  he  looked  to  God  alone,  and  learned 
that  he  could  lean  in  perfect  safety  upon  that  all-powerful 
arm. 

To  a  friend  of  the  Reformation  Luther  *vrote :  "  We  cannot 
attain  to  the  understanding  of  Scripture  either  by  study  or 
by  strength  of  intellect.  Therefore  your  first  duty  must  be 
to  begin  -with  prayer.  Entreat  the  Lord  to  deign  to  grant 
you,  in  his  rich  mercy,  rightly  to  understand  his  Word. 
There  is  no  other  interpreter  of  the  Word  but  the  Author  of 
that  Word  himself.  Even  as  he  has  said,  'They  shall  all  be 
taught  of  God.'  Hope  nothing  from  your  study  and  the 
strength  of  your  intellect ;  but  simply  put  your  trust  in  God, 
and  in  the  guidance  of  his  Spirit.  Believe  one  who  has 
made  trial  of  this  matter."  Here  is  a  lesson  of  vital  impor- 
tance to  those  who  feel  that  God  has  called  them  to  present 
to  others  the  solemn  truths  for  this  time.  These  truths  will 
stir  the  enmity  of  Satan,  and  of  men  who  love  the  fables  that 
he  has  devised.  In  the  conflict  with  the  powers  of  evil, 
there  is  need  of  something  more  than  strength  of  intellect 
and  human  wisdom. 

When  enemies  appealed  to  custom  and  tradition,  or  to 
the  assertions  and  authority  of  the  pope,  Luther  met  them 
with  the  Bible,  and  the  Bible  only.  Here  were  arguments 
which  they  could  not  answer;  therefore  the  slaves  of  formal- 
ism and  superstition  clamored  for  his  blood,  as  the  Jews  had 
clamored  for  the  blood  of  Christ.  "He  is  a  heretic,"  cried 
the  Roman  zealots ;  "  it  is  a  sin  to  allow  him  to  live  an  hour 
longer!  Away  with  him  at  once  to  the  scaffold  I"  But 
Luther  did  not  fall  a  prey  to  their  fury.  God  had  a  work 
for  him  to  do,  and  angels  of  Heaven  were  sent  to  protect 
him.  Many,  however,  who  had  received  from  Luther  the 
previous  light,  were  made  the  objects  of  Satan's  wrath,  and 
for  the  truth's  sake  fearlessly  suffered  torture  and  death. 


L  (TTHER'S  SEPARA  TION  FR  OM  R  OME.  133 

Luther's  teachings  attracted  the  attention  of  thoughtful 
minds  throughout  all  Germany.  From  his  sermons  and 
writings  issued  beams  of  light  which  awakened  and  illumi- 
nated thousands.  A  living  faith  was  taking  the  place  of 
the  dead  formalism  in  which  the  church  had  so  long  been 
held.  The  people  were  daily  losing  confidence  in  the  super- 
stitions of  Romanism.  The  barriers  of  prejudice  were  giving 
way.  The  Word  of  God,  by  which  Luther  tested  every 
doctrine  and  every  claim,  was  like  a  two-edged  sword,  cut- 
ting its  way  to  the  hearts  of  the  people.  Everywhere  there 
was  awakening  a  desire  for  spiritual  progress.  Everywhere 
was  such  a  hungering  and  thirsting  after  righteousness  as 
had  not  been  known  for  ages.  The  eyes  of  the  people,  so 
long  directed  to  human  rites  and  earthly  mediators,  were 
now  turning,  in  penitence  and  faith,  to  Christ  arid  him  cru- 
cified. 

This  widespread  interest  aroused  still  further  the  fears  of 
the  papal  authorities.  Luther  received  a  summons  to  ap- 
pear at  Rome  to  answer  to. the  charge  of  heresy.  The  com- 
mand filled  his  friends  with  terror.  They  knew  full  well 
the  danger  that  threatened  him  in  that  corrupt  city,  already 
drunk  with  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  of  Jesus.  They  pro- 
tested against  his  going  to  Rome,  and  requested  that  he 
receive  his  examination  in  Germany. 

This  arrangement  was  finally  effected,  and  the  pope's 
legate  was  appointed  to  hear  the  case.  In  the  instructions 
communicated  by  the  pontiff  to  this  official,  it  was  stated 
that  Luther  had  already  been  declared  a  heretic.  The  legate 
was  therefore  charged  to  "  prosecute  and  reduce  him  to  sub- 
mission without  delay."  If  he  should  remain  steadfast,  and 
the  legate  should  fail  to  gain  possession  of  his  person,  he 
was  empowered.to  "proscribe  him  in  all  places  in  Germany, 
to  put  away,  curse,  and  excommunicate  all  who  were 
attached  to  him."  And  further,  the  pope  directed  his 
legate,  in  order  entirely  to  root  out  the  pestilent  heresy,  to 
excommunicate  all,  of  whatever  dignity  in  Church  or  State, 


134  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

r\<vpt  the  emperor,  who  should  neglect  to  seize  Luther  and 
his  adherents,  and  deliver  them  up  to  the  vengeance  of  Rome. 

Here  is  displayed  the  true  spirit  of  popery.  Not  a  trace 
of  Christian  principle,  or  even  of  common  justice,  is  to  be 
seen  in  the  whole  document.  Luther  was  at  a  great  dis- 
tance from  Rome;  he  had  had  no  opportunity  to  explain  or 
defend  his  position;  yet  before  his  case  had  been  investigated, 
he  was  summarily  pronounced  a  heretic,  and,  in  the  same 
day,  exhorted, accused,  judged,  and  condemned;  and  all  this 
by  the  self-styled  holy  father,  the  only  supreme,  infallible 
authority  in  Church  or  State ! 

At  this  time,  when  Luther  so  much  needed  the  sympathy 
and  counsel  of  a  true  friend,  God's  providence  sent  Melanc- 
thon  to  Wittenberg.  Young  in  years,  modest  and  diffident 
in  his  manners,  Melancthon's  sound  judgment,  extensive 
knowledge,  and  winning  eloquence,  combined  with  the 
purity  and  uprightness  of  his  character,  won  universal  admi- 
ration and  esteem.  The  brilliancy  of  his  talents  was  not 
more  marked  than  his  gentleness  of  disposition.  He  soon 
became  an  earnest  disciple  of  the  gospel,  and  Luther's  most 
trusted  friend  and  valued  supporter;  his  gentleness,  caution, 
and  exactness  serving  as  a  complement  to  Luther's  courage 
and  energy.  Their  union  in  the  work  added  strength  to  the 
Reformation,  and  was  a  source  of  great  encouragement  to 
Luther. 

Augsburg  had  been  fixed  upon  as  the  place  of  trial,  and 
the  reformer  set  out  on  foot  to  perform  the  journey  thither. 
Serious  fears  were  entertained  in  his  behalf.  Threats  had 
IK  <  n  made  openly  that  he  would  be  sri/rd  and  murdered  on 
the  way,  and  his  friends  begged  him  not  to  venture.  They 
even  entreated  him  to  leave  Wittenberg  for  a  time,  and  find 
safety  with  those  who  would  gladly  protect  him.  But  he 
would  not  leave  the  position  where  God  had  placed  him. 
He  must  continue  faithfully  to  maintain  the  truth,  notwith- 
standing the  storms  that  wcro  beating  upon  him.  His 
language  was:  "lam  like  Jeremiah,  a  man  of  strife  and 


LUTHER'S  SEPARATION  FROM  ROME.  135 


contention ;  but  the  more  they  increase  their  threatenings, 
the  more  they  multiply  my  joy.  .  .  .  They  have  already 
torn  to  pieces  my  honor  and  my  good  name.  All  I  have 
left  is  my  wretched  body ;  let  them  have  it ;  they  will  then 
shorten  my.  life  by  a  few  hours.  But  as  to  my  soul,  they 
shall  not  have  that.  He  who  resolves  to  bear  the  word  of 
Christ  to  the  world,  must  expect  death  at  every  hour." 

The  tidings  of  Luther's  arrival  at  Augsburg  gave  great 
satisfaction  to  the  papal  legate.  The  troublesome  heretic 
who  was  exciting  the  attention  of  the  whole  world  seemed 
now  in  the  power  of  Rome,  and  the  legate  determined  that 
he  should  not  escape.  The  reformer  had  failed  to  provide 
himself  with  a  safe-conduct.  His  friends  urged  him  not  to 
appear  before  the  legate  without  one,  and  they  themselves 
undertook  to  procure  it  from  the  emperor.  The  legate  in- 
tended to  force  Luther,  if  possible,  to  retract,  or,  failing  in 
this,  to  cause  him  to  be  conveyed  to  Rome,  to  share  the  fate 
of  Huss  and  Jerome.  Therefore  through  his  agents  he 
endeavored  to  induce  Luther  to  appear  without  a  safe-con- 
duct, trusting  himself  to  his  mercy.  This  the  reformer  firmly 
declined  to  do.  Not  until  he  had  received  the  document 
pledging  him  the  emperor's  protection,  did  he  appear  in  the 
presence  of  the  papal  ambassador. 

As  a  matter  of  policy,  the  Romanists  had  decided  to 
attempt  to  win  Luther  by  an  appearance  of  gentleness.  The 
legate,  in  his  interviews  with  him,  professed  great  friendli- 
ness ;  but  he  demanded  that  Luther  submit  implicitly  to  the 
authority  of  the  church,  and  yield  every  point,  without  argu- 
ment or  question.  He  had  not  rightly  estimated  the  character 
of  the  man  with  whom  he  had  to  deal.  Luther,  in  reply, 
expressed  his  regard  for  the  church,  his  desire  for  the  truth, 
his  readiness  to  answer  all  objections  to  what  he  had  taught, 
and  to  submit  his  doctrines  to  the  decision  of  certain  lead- 
ing universities.  But  at  the  same  time  he  protested  against 
the  cardinal's  course  in  requiring  him  to  retract  without 
having  proved  him  in  error. 


136  Till-:  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  only  response  was,  "  Recant,  recant."  The  reformer 
showed  that  his  position  was  sustained  by  the  Scriptures, 
and  firmly  declared  that  he  could  not  renounce  the  truth. 
The  legate,  unable  to  reply  to  Luther's  arguments,  over- 
whelmed him  with  a  storm  of  reproaches,  gibes,  and  flat- 
tery, interspersed  with  quotations  from  tradition  and  the  say- 
ings of  the  Fathers,  granting  the  reformer  no  opportunity  to 
speak.  Seeing  that  the  conference,  thus  continued,  would  be 
utterly  futile,  Luther  finally  obtained  a  reluctant  permission 
to  present  his  answer  in  writing. 

"  In  so  doing,"  said  he,  writing  to  a  friend,  "  the  oppressed 
find  double  gain ;  first,  what  is  written  may  be  submitted  to 
the  judgment  of  others;  and  second,  one  has  a  better  chance 
of  working  on  the  fears,  if  not  on  the  conscience,  of  an  arro- 
gant and  babbling  despot,  who  would  otherwise  overpower 
by  his  imperious  language."  At  the  next  interview,  Luther 
presented  a  clear,  concise,  and  forcible  exposition  of  his 
views,  fully  supported  by  many  quotations  from  Scripture. 
This  paper,  after  reading  aloud,  he  handed  to  the  cardinal, 
who,  however,  cast  it  contemptuously  aside,  declaring  it  to 
be  a  mass  of  idle  words  and  irrelevant  quotations.  Luther, 
fully  roused,  now  met  the  haughty  prelate  on  his  own 
ground,  — the  traditions  and  teachings  of  the  church, — and 
utterly  overthrew  his  assumptions. 

When  the  prelate  saw  that  Luther's  reasoning  was  unan- 
swerable, he  lost  all  self-control,  and  in  a  rage  cried  out: 
"Retract,  or  I  will  send  you  to  Rome,  there  to  appear  before 
the  judges  commissioned  to  take  cognizance  of  your  case.  I 
will  excommunicate  you  and  all  your  partisans,  and  all  who 
shall  at  any  time  countenance  you,  and  will  cast  them  out 
of  the  church."  And  he  finally  declared,  in  a  haughty  and 
angry  tone,  "  Retract,  or  return  no  more." 

The  reformer  promptly  withdrew  with  his  friends,  thus 
declaring  plainly  that  no  retraction  was  to  be  expected  from 
him.  This  was  not  what  the  cardinal  had  purposed.  He  had 
flattered  himself  that  by  violence  he  could  awe  Luther  to 


LUTHER \S  SEPARATION  FROM  ROME.  137 

submission.  Now,  left  alone  with  his  supporters,  he  looked 
from  one  to  another,  in  utter  chagrin  at  the  unexpected 
failure  of  his  schemes. 

Luther's  efforts  on  this  occasion  were  not  without  good 
results.  The  large  assembly  present  had  opportunity  to 
compare  the  two  men,  and  to  judge  for  themselves  of  the 
spirit  manifested  by  them,  as  well  as  of  the  strength  and 
truthfulness  of  their  positions.  How  marked  the  contrast! 
The  reformer,  simple,  humble,  firm,  stood  up  in  the  strength 
of  God,  having  truth  on  his  side;  the  pope's  representative, 
self-important,  overbearing,  haughty,  and  unreasonable,  was 
without  a  single  argument  from  the  Scriptures,  yet  vehe- 
mently crying,  "Retract,  or  be  sent  to  Rome  for  punishment." 

Notwithstanding  Luther  had  secured  a  safe-conduct,  the 
Romanists  were  plotting  to  seize  an  1  imprison  him.  His 
friends  urged  that  as  it  was  useless  for  him  to  prolong  his 
stay,  he  should  return  to  Wittenberg  without  delay,  and  that 
the  utmost  caution  should  be  observed  in  order  to  conceal 
his  intentions.  He  accordingly  left  Augsburg  before  day- 
break, on  horseback,  accompanied  only  by  a  guide  furnished 
him  by  the  magistrate.  With  many  forebodings  he  secretly 
made  his  way  through  the  dark  and  silent  streets  of  the  city. 
Enemies,  vigilant  and  cruel,  were  plotting  his  destruction. 
Would  he  escape  the  snares  prepared  for  him?  Those  were 
moments  of  anxiety  and  earnest  prayer.  He  reached  a  small 
gate  in  the  wall  of  the  city.  It  was  opened  for  him,  and 
with  his  guide  he  passed  through  without  hindrance.  Once 
safely  outside,  the  fugitives  hastened  their  flight,  and  before 
the  legate  learned  of  Luther's  departure,  he  was  beyond  the 
reach  of  his  persecutors.  Satan  and  his  emissaries  were 
defeated.  The  man  whom  they  had  thought  in  their  power 
was  gone,  escaped  as  a  bird  from  the  snare  of  the  fowler. 

At  the  news  of  Luther's  escape,  the  legate  was  over- 
whelmed with  surprise  and  anger.  He  had  expected  to 
receive  great  honor  for  his  wisdom  and  firmness  in  dealing 
with  this  disturber  of  the  church;  but  his  hope  was  disap- 


138  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

pointed.  He  gave  expression  to  his  wrath  in  a  letter  to 
Frederick,  the  Elector  of  Saxony,  bitterly  denouncing  Lu- 
ther, and  demanding  that  Frederick  send  the  reformer  to 
Rome  or  banish  him  from  Saxony. 

In  defense,  Luther  urged  that  the  legate  or  the  pope  show 
him  his  errors  from  the  Scriptures,  and  pledged  himself  in 
the  most  solemn  manner  to  renounce  his  doctrines  if  they 
could  be  shown  to  contradict  the  Word  of  God.  And  he 
expressed  his  gratitude  to  God-  that  he  had  been  counted 
worthy  to  suffer  in  so  holy  a  cause. 

The  elector  had,  as  yet,  little  knowledge  of  the  reformed 
doctrines,  but  he  was  deeply  impressed  by  the  candor,  force, 
and  clearness  of  Luther's  words;  and,  until  the  reformer 
should  be  proved  to  be  in  error,  Frederick  resolved  to  stand 
as  his  protector.  In  reply  to  the  legate's  demand  he  wrote: 
"  Since  Doctor  Martin  has  appeared  before  you  at  Augsburg, 
you  should  be  satisfied.  We  did  not  expect  that  you  would 
endeavor  to  make  him  retract  without  having  convinced 
him  of  his  errors.  None  of  the  learned  men  in  our  prin- 
cipality have  informed  us  that  Martin's  doctrine  is  im- 
pious, antichristian,  or  heretical.  We  must  refuse,  therefore, 
either  to  send  Luther  to  Rome  or  to  expel  him  from  our 
States." 

The  elector  saw  that  there  was  a  general  breaking  down 
of  the  moral  restraints  of  society.  A  great  work  of  reform 
was  needed.  The  complicated  and  expensive  arrangements 
to  restrain  and  punish  crime  would  be  unnecessary  if  men 
but  acknowledged  and  obeyed  the  requirements  of  God  and 
the  dictates  of  an  enlightened  conscience.  He  saw  that  Lu- 
ther was  laboring  to  secure  this  object,  and  he  secretly 
rejoiced  that  a  better  influence  was  making  itself  felt  in  the 
church. 

He  saw  also  that  as  a  professor  in  the  university  Luther 
was  eminently  successful.  Only  a  year  had  passed  since 
tin-  reformer  posted  his  theses  on  the  castle  church,  yet  there 
was  already  a  great  falling  off  in  the  number  of  pilgrims 


L UTHERS  SEPARA  TION  FROM  ROME.  139 

that  visited  the  church  at  the  festival  of  All-Saints.  Rome 
had  been  deprived  of  worshipers  and  offerings,  but  their 
place  was  filled  by  another  class,  who  now  came  to  Witten- 
berg,— not  pilgrims  to  adore  her  relics,  but  students  to  fill 
her  halls  of  learning.  The  writings  of  Luther  had  kindled 
everywhere  a  new  interest  in 'the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  not 
only  from  all  parts  of  Germany,  but  from  other  lands, 
students  flocked  to  the  university.  Young  men,  coming  in 
sight  of  Wittenberg  for  the  first  time,  would  "  raise  their 
hands  to  heaven,  and  bless  God  for  having  caused  the 
light  of  truth  to  shine  forth  from  Wittenberg,  as  in  former 
ages  from  Mount  Zion,  that  it  might  penetrate  to  the  most 
distant  lands." 

Luther  was  as  yet  but  partially  converted  from  the  errors  of 
Romanism.  But  as  he  compared  the  Holy  Oracles  with  the 
papal  decrees  and  constitutions,  he  was  filled  with  wonder. 
"  I  am  reading,"  he  wrote,  "  the  decretals  of  the  popes,  and 
.  .  .  .  I  know  not  whether  the  pope  is  antichrist  him- 
self, or  whether  he  is  his  apostle;  so  misrepresented  and  even 
crucified  does  Christ  appear  in  them."  Yet  at  this  time 
Luther  was  still  a  supporter  of  the  Roman  Church,  and 
had  no  thought  that  he  would  ever  separate  from  her  com- 
munion. 

The  reformer's  writings  and  his  doctrine  were  extending  to 
every  nation  in  Christendom.  The  work  spread  to  Switzer- 
land and  Holland.  Copies  of  his  writings  found  their  way 
to  France  and  Spain.  In  England  his  teachings  were 
received  as  the  word  of  life.  To  Belgium  and  Italy  also  the 
truth  had  extended.  Thousands  were  awakening  from  their 
death-like  stupor  to  the  joy  and  hope  of  a  life  of  faith. 

Rome  became  more  and  more  exasperated  by  the  attacks  of 
Luther,  and  it  was  declared  by  some  of  his  fanatical  oppo- 
nents, even  by  doctors  in  Catholic  universities,  that  he  who 
should  kill  the  rebellious  monk  would  be  without  sin.  One 
day  a  stranger,  with  a  pistol  hidden  under  his  cloak,  ap- 
proached the  reformer,  and  inquired  why  he  went  thus 


140  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

alone.  "  I  am  in  the  hands  of  God/'  answered  Luther.  "He 
is  my  help  and  my  shield.  What  can  man  do  unto  me?" 
Upon  hearing  these  words,  the  stranger  turned  pale,  and  fled 
away,  as  from  the  presence  of  the  angels  of  Heaven. 

Rome  was  bent  upon  the  destruction  of  Luther;  but  God 
was  his  defense.  His  doctrines  were  heard  everywhere, — in 
convents,  in  cottages,  in  the  castles  of  the  nobles,  in  the  uni- 
versities, in  the  palaces  of  kings;  and  noble  men  were  rising 
on  every  hand  to  sustain  his  efforts. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  Luther,  reading  the  works  of 
Huss,  found  that  the  great  truth  of  justification  by  faith, 
which  he  himself  was  seeking  to  uphold  and  teach,  had  been 
held  by  the  Bohemian  reformer.  "  We  have  all,"  said  Luther, 
"  Paul,  Augustine,  and  myself,  been  Hussites  without  know- 
ing it."  "  God  will  surely  visit  it  upon  the  world,"  he  con- 
tinued, "that  the  truth  was  preached  to  it  a  century  ago,  and 
burned." 

In  an  appeal  to  the  emperor  and  nobility  of  Germany  in 
behalf  of  the  Reformation  of  Christianity,  Luther  wrote 
concerning  the  pope:  "It  is  monstrous  to  see  him  who  is 
called  the  vicar  of  Christ,  displaying  a  magnificence  un- 
rivaled by  that  of  any  emperor.  Is  this  to  represent  the 
poor  and  lowly  Jesus  or  the  humble  St.  Peter?  The  pope, 
say  they,  is  the  lord  of  the  world!  But  Christ,  whose  vicar 
he  boasts  of  being,  said, '  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world.' 
Can  the  dominions  of  a  vicar  extend  beyond  those  of  his 
superior?" 

He  wrote  thus  of  the  universities:  "I  fear  much  that  the 
universities  will  be  found  to  be  great  gates  leading  down  to 
hell,  unless  they  take  diligent  care  to  explain  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  and  to  engrave  them  in  1  lie  hearts  of  our  youth. 
I  advise  no  one  to  place  his  child  where  the  Holy  Scriptures 
are  not  regarded  as  the  rule  of  life.  Every  institution  where 
the  Word  of  God  is  not  diligently  studied,  must  become 
corrupt." 

This  appeal  was  rapidly  circulated  throughout  Germany, 


L  OTHERS  SEPARA  TION  FR  OM  R  OME.  141 

and  exerted  a  powerful  influence  upon  the  people.  The 
whole  nation  w-as  stirred,  and  multitudes  were  roused  to 
rally  around  the  standard  of  reform.  Luther's  opponents, 
burning  with  a  desire  for  revenge,  urged  the  pope  to  take 
decisive  measures  against  him.  It  was  decreed  that  his 
doctrines  should  be  immediately  condemned.  Sixty  days 
were  granted  the  reformer  and  his  adherents,  after  which,  if 
they  did  not  recant,  they  were  all  to  be  excommunicated. 

That  was  a  terrible  crisis  for  the  Reformation.  For  cent- 
uries Rome's  sentence  of  excommunication  had  struck  terror 
to  powerful  monarchs;  it  had  filled  mighty  empires  with 
woe  and  desolation.  Those  upon  whom  its  condemnation 
fell,  were  universally  regarded  with  dread  and  horror;  they 
were  cut  off  from  intercourse  with  their  fellows,  and  treated 
as  outlaws,  to  be  hunted  to  extermination.  Luther  was  not 
blind  to  the  tempest  about  to  burst  upon  him ;  but  he  stood 
firm,  trusting  in  Christ  to  be  his  support  and  shield.  With 
a  martyr's  faith  and  courage  he  wrote :  "  What  is  about  to 
happen  I  know  not,  and  I  care  not  to  know."  "  Wherever 
the  blow  may  reach  me,  I  fear  not.  Not  so  much  as  a  leaf 
falls  without  the  will  of  our  Father;  how  much  rather  will 
he  care  for  us !  It  is  a  light  matter  to  die  for  the  Word, 
since  this  Word,  that  was  made  flesh  for  us,  hath  himself 
died.  If  we  die  with  him,  we  shall  live  with  him;  and, 
passing  through  that  which  he  has  passed  through  before 
us,  we  shall  be  where  he  is,  and  dwell  with  him  forever." 

When  the  papal  bull  reached  Luther,  he  said:  "I  despise 
it,  and  resist  it,  as  impious  and  false.  .  .  .  It  is  Christ 
himself  who  is  condemned  therein."  "I  glory  in  the  pros- 
pect of  suffering  for  the  best  of  causes.  Already  I  feel 
greater  liberty;  for  I  know  now  that  the  pope  is  antichrist, 
and  that  his  throne  is  that  of  Satan  himself." 

Yet  the  mandate  of  Rome,  was  not  without  effect.  Prison, 
torture,  and  sword  were  weapons  potent  to  enforce  obedience. 
The  weak  and  superstitious  trembled  before  the  decree  of  the 
pope,  and  while  there  was  general  sympathy  for  Luther, 


142  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

many  felt  that  life  was  too  dear  to  be  risked  in  the  cause  of 
reform.  Everything  seemed  to  indicate  that  the  reformer's 
work  was  about  to  close. 

But  Luther  was  fearless  still.  Rome  had  hurled  her 
anathemas  against  him,  and  the  world  looked  on,  nothing 
doubting  that  he  would  perish  or  be  forced  to  yield.  But 
with  terrible  power  he  flung  back  upon  herself  the  sentence 
of  condemnation,  and  publicly  declared  his  determination 
to  abandon  her  forever.  In  the  presence  of  a  crowd  of 
students,  doctors,  and  citizens  of  all  ranks,  Luther  burned 
the  pope's  bull,  with  the  canon  laws,  the  decretals,  and  cer- 
tain writings  sustaining  the  papal  power.  "My  enemies 
have  been  able  by  burning  my  books,"  he  said,  "to  injure 
the  cause  of  truth  in  the  minds  of  some,  and  to  destroy  souls; 
for  this  reason  I  consume  their  books  in  return.  A  serious 
struggle  has  just  commenced.  Hitherto  I  have  been  playing 
with  the  pope;  now  I  wage  open  war.  I  began  this  work 
in  God's  name;  it  will  be  ended  without  me,  and  by  his 
might," 

To  the  reproaches  of  his  enemies,  who  taunted  him  with 
the  weakness  of  his  cause,  Luther  answered :  "  Who  knows 
if  God  has  not  chosen  and  called  me  to  perform  this  needed 
work,  and  if  these  babblers  ought  not  to  fear  that  by  despis- 
ing me,  they  despise  God  himself?  They  say  I  am  alone; 
no,  for  Jehovah  is  with  me.  In  their  sense,  Moses  was  alone 
at  the  departure  from  Egypt;  Elijah  was  alone  in  the  reign 
of  King  Ahab;  Isaiah  was  alone  in  Jerusalem;  Ezekiel  was 
alone  in  Babylon.  Hear  this,  0  Rome:  God  never  selected 
as  a  prophet  either  the  high  priest  or  any  great  personage; 
but  rather,  he  chose  low  and  despised  men,  once  even  the 
shepherd  Amos.  In  every  age  the  saints  have  been  com- 
pel led  to  rebuke  kings,  princes,  recreant  priests,  and  wise 
mm  at  the  peril  of  their  lives."  "I  do  not  say  that  I  also 
am  a  prophe.t;  but  I  do  say  that  they  ought  to  fear  precisely 
because  I  am  alone,  while  on  the  side  of  the  oppressor  arc 
numbers,  caste,  wealth,  and  mocking  letters.  Yes,  I  am 


LUTHER'S  SEPARA  TION  FROM  ROME,          143 


alone;  but  I  stand  serene,  because  side  by  side  with  me  is 
the  Word  of  God;  and  with  all  their  boasted  numbers,  this, 
the  greatest  of  powers,  is  not  with  them." 

Yet  it  was  not  without  a  terrible  struggle  with  himself 
that  Luther  decided  upon  a  final  separation  from  the  church. 
It  was  about  this  time  that  he  wrote:  "I  feel  more  and  more 
every  day  how  difficult  it  is  to  lay  aside  the  scruples  which 
one  has  imbibed  in  childhood.  Oh,  how  much  pain  it  cost 
me,  though  I  had  the  Scriptures  on  my  side,  to  justify  it  to 
myself  that  I  should  dare  to  make  a  stand  alone  against  the 
pope,  and  hold  him  forth  as  antichrist!  What  have  the 
tribulations  of  my  heart  not  been !  How  many  times  have 
I  asked  myself  with  bitterness  that  question  which  was  so 
frequent  on  the  lips  of  the  papists:  'Art  thou  alone  wise? 
Can  every  one  else  be  mistaken?  How  will  it  be,  if,  after 
all,  it  is  thyself  who  art  wrong,  and  who  art  involving 
in  thy  error  so  many  souls,  who  will  then  be  eternally 
damned?'  'Twas  so  I  fought  with  myself  and  with  Satan, 
till  Christ,  by  his  infallible  Word,  fortified  my  heart  against 
these  doubts." 

The  pope  had  threatened  Luther  with  excommunication 
if  he  did  not  recant,  and  the  threat  was  now  fulfilled.  A 
new  bull  appeared,  declaring  the  reformer's  final  separation 
from  the  Romish  Church,  denouncing  him  as  accursed  of 
Heaven,  and  including  in  the  same  condemnation  all  who 
should  receive  his  doctrines.  The  great  contest  had  been 
fully  entered  upon. 

Opposition  is  the  lot  of  all  whom  God  employs  to  present 
truths  specially  applicable  to  their  time.  There  was  a  pres- 
ent truth  in  the  days  of  Luther, — a  truth  at  that  time  of 
special  importance ;  there  is  a  present  truth  for  the  church 
to-day.  He  who  does  all  things  according  to  the  counsel  of 
his  will,  has  been  pleased  to  place  men  under  various  cir- 
cumstances, and  to  enjoin  upon  them  duties  peculiar  to  the 
times  in  which  they  live,  and  the  conditions  under  which 
they  are  placed.  If  they  would  prize  the  light  given  them, 


144  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

broader  views  of  truth  would  be  opened  before  them.  But 
truth  is  no  more  desired  by  the  majority  to-day  than  it  was 
by  the  papists  who  opposed  Luther.  There  is  the  same 
disposition  to  accept  the  theories  and  traditions  of  men  in- 
stead of  the  Word  of  God  as  in  former  ages.  Those  who 
present  the  truth  for  this  time  should  not  expect  to  be  re- 
ceived with  greater  favor  than  were  earlier  reformers.  The 
great  controversy  between  truth  and  error,  between  Christ 
and  Satan,  is  to  increase  in  intensity  to  the  close  of  this 
world's  history. 

Said  Jesus  to  his  disciples:  "If  ye  were  of  the  world,  the 
world  would  love  his  own;  but  because  ye  are  not  of  the 
world,  but  I  have  chosen  you  out  of  the  world,  therefore  the 
world  hateth  you.  Remember  the  word  that  I  said  unto 
you,  The  servant  is  not  greater  than  his  Lord.  If  they 
have  persecuted  me,  they  will  also  persecute  you;  if  they 
have  kept  my  saying,  they  will  keep  yours  also." 1  And  on 
the  other  hand  our  Lord  declared  plainly:  "  Woe  unto  you, 
when  all  men  shall  speak  well  of  you !  for  so  did  their  fathers 
to  the  false  prophets."2  The  spirit  of  the  world  is  no  more 
in  harmony  with  the  Spirit  of  Christ  to-day  than  in  earlier 
times;  and  those  who  preach  the  Word  of  God  in  its  purity 
will  be  received  with  no  greater  favor  now  than  then.  The 
forms  of  opposition  to  the  truth  may  change,  the  enmity 
maybe  less  open  because  it  is  more  subtle;  but  the  same 
antagonism  still  exists,  and  will  be  manifested  to  the  end  of 
time. 

1  John  15  : 19,  20.  '  Luke  6  :  26. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


UJTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET. 

A  NEW  emperor,  Charles  V.,  had  ascended  the  throne  of 
Germany,  and  the  emissaries  of  Rome  hastened  to  present 
their  congratulations,  and  induce  the  monarch  to  employ  his 
power  against  the  Reformation.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Elector  of  Saxony,  to  whom  Charles  was  in  great  degree 
indebted  for  his  crown,  entreated  him  to  take  no  step  against 
Luther  until  he  should  have  granted  him  a  hearing.  The 
emperor  was  thus  placed  in  a  position  of  great  perplexity 
and  embarrassment.  The  papists  would  be  satisfied  with 
nothing  short  of  an  imperial  edict  sentencing  Luther  to 
death.  The  elector  had  declared  firmly  that  "  neither  his 
imperial  majesty  nor  any  one  else  had  yet  made  it  appear  to 
him  that  the  reformer's  writings  had  been  refuted ; "  there- 
fore he  requested  "that  Doctor  Luther  be  furnished  with  a 
safe-conduct,  so  that  he  might  answer  for  himself  before  a 
tribunal  of  learned,  pious,  and  impartial  judges." 

The  attention  of  all  parties  was  now  directed  to  the  assem- 
bly of  the  German  States  which  convened  at  Worms  soon 
after  the  accession  of  Charles  to  the  empire.  There  were 
important  political  questions  and  interests  to  be  considered 
by  this  national  council;  for  the  first  time  the  princes  of 
Germany  were  to  meet  their  youthful  monarch  in  deliber- 
ative assembly.  From  all  parts  of  the  Fatherland  had  come 
the  dignitaries  of  Church  and  State.  Secular  lords,  high- 
born, powerful,  and  jealous  of  their  hereditary  rights; 
princely  ecclesiastics,  flushed  with  their  conscious  superiority 
in  rank  and  power;  courtly  knights  and  their  armed  re- 
tainers; and  ambassadors  from  foreign  and  distant  lands — all 
12  (U5) 


146  Till:   (iUKAT   CONTROVERSY. 


gathered  at  Worms.  Yet  in  that  vast  assembly  the  subject 
that  excited  the  deepest  interest,  was  the  cause  of  the  Saxon 
reformer. 

Charles  had  previously  directed  the  elector  to  bring  Lu- 
ther with  him  to  the  Diet,  assuring  him  of  protection,  and 
promising  a  free  discussion,  with  competent  persons,  of  the 
questions  in  dispute.  Luther  was  anxious  to  appear  before 
the  emperor.  His  health  was  at  this  time  much  impaired; 
yet  he  wrote  to  the  elector:  "If  I  cannot  perform  the  jour- 
ney to  Worms  in  good  health,  1  will  be  carried  there,  sick  as 
I  am.  For,  since  the  emperor  has  summoned  me,  I  cannot 
doubt  that  it  is  the  call  of  God  himself.  If  they  intend  to 
use  violence  against  me,  as  they  probably  do,  for  assuredly 
it  is  with  no  view  of  gaining  information  that  they  require  me 
to  appear  before  them,  I  place  the  matter  in  the  Lord's  hands. 
He  still  lives  and  reigns  who  preserved  the  three  Israelites 
in  the  fiery  furnace.  If  it  be  not  his  will  to  save  me.  my 
life  is  of  little  consequence.  Let  us  only  take  care  that  the 
gospel  be  not  exposed  to  the  scorn  of  the  ungodly,  and  let 
us  shed  our  blood  in  its  defense  rather  than  allow  them  to 
triumph.  Who  shall  say  whether  my  life  or  my  death 
would  contribute  most  to  the  salvation  of  my  brethren?" 
"  Expect  anything  from  me  but  flight  or  recantation.  Fly 
I  cannot;  still  less  can  I  recant." 

As  the  news  was  circulated  at  Worms  that  Luther  was  to 
appear  before  the  Diet,  a  general  excitement  was  created. 
Aleander,  the  papal  legate  to  whom  the  case  had  been  spe- 
cially intrusted,  was  alarmed  and  enraged.  He  saw  that  the 
result  would  be  disastrous  to  the  papal  cause.  To  institute 
inquiry  into  a  case  in  which  the  pope  had  already  pronounced 
sentence  of  condemnation,  would  be  to  cast  contempt  11}  ton 
the  authority  of  the  sovereign  pontiff.  Furthermore,  he  was 
apprehensive  that  the  eloquent  and  powerful  arguments  of 
this  man  might  turn  away  many  of  the  princes  from  the 
cause  of  the  pope.  He  therefore,  in  the  most  urgent  manner, 
remonstrated  with  Charles  against  Luther's  appearance  at 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  147 

• 

Worms.  About  this  time  the  bull  declaring  Luther's  excom- 
munication was  published ;  and  this,  coupled  with  the  repre- 
sentations of  the  legate,  induced  the  emperor  to  yield.  He 
wrote  to  the  elector  that  if  Luther  would  not  retract,  he  must 
remain  at  Wittenberg. 

Not  content  with  this  victory,  Aleander  labored  with  all 
the  power  and  cunning  at  his  command  to  secure  Luther's 
condemnation.  With  a  persistence  worthy  of  a  better  cause, 
he  urged  the  matter  upon  the  attention  of  princes,  prelates, 
and  other  members  of  the  assembly,  accusing  the  reformer 
of  sedition,  rebellion,  impiety,  and  blasphemy.  But  the 
vehemence  and  passion  manifested  by  the  legate  revealed 
too  plainly  the  spirit  by  which  he  was  actuated.  "  Hatred 
and  thirst  for  vengeance,"  said  a  papist  writer,  "  are  his  mo- 
tives, rather  than  true  zeal  for  religion."  The  majority  of 
the  Diet  were  more  than  ever  inclined  to  regard  Luther's 
cause  with  favor. 

With  redoubled  zeal,  Aleander  urged  upon  the  emperor 
the  duty  of  executing  the  papal  edicts.  But  under  the  laws 
of  Germany  this  could  not  be  done  without  the  concurrence 
of  the  princes,  and,  overcome  at  last  by  the  legate's  importu- 
nity, Charles  bade  him  present  his  case  to  the  Diet.  "  It 
was  a  proud  day  for  the  nuncio.  The  assembly  was  a  great 
one ;  the  cause  was  even  greater.  Aleander  was  to  plead  for 
Rome,  the  mother  and  mistress  of  all  churches ;  he  was  to 
vindicate  the  princedom  of  Peter  before  the  assembled  prin- 
cipalities of  Christendom.  He  had  the  gift  of  eloquence, 
and  he  rose  to  the  greatness  of  the  occasion.  Providence 
ordered  it  that  Rome  should  appear  and  plead  by  the  ablest 
of  her  orators  in  the  presence  of  the  most  august  of  tri- 
bunals, before  she  was  condemned."  With  some  misgiv- 
ings those  who  favored  the  reformer  looked  forward  to  the 
effect  of  Aleander 's  speech.  The  Elector  of  Saxony  was  not 
present,  but  by  his  direction  some  of  his  councillors  attended, 
to  take  notes  of  the  nuncio's  address. 

With  all  the  power  of  learning  and  eloquence,  Aleander 


148  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


set  himself  to  overthrow  the  truth.  Charge  after  charge  he 
hurled  against  Luther  as  an  enemy  of  the  Church  and  the 
State,  the  living  and  the  dead,  clergy  and  laity,  councils 
and  private  Christians.  "There  is  enough  in  the  errors  of 
Luther/'  he  declared,  "to  warrant  the  burning  of  a  hundred 
thousand  heretics." 

In  conclusion,  he  endeavored  to  cast  contempt  upon  the 
adherents  of  the  reformed  faith :  "  What  are  all  these  Luther- 
ans?— A  motley  rabble  of  insolent  grammarians,  corrupt 
priests,  dissolute  monks,  ignorant  lawyers,  and  degraded 
nobles,  with  the  common  people  whom  they  have  misled 
and  perverted.  How  greatly  superior  is  the  Catholic  party 
in  numbers,  intelligence,  and  power!  A  unanimous  decree 
from  this  illustrious  assembly  will  open  the  eyes  of  the 
simple,  show  the  unwary  their  danger,  determine  the  wa- 
vering, and  strengthen  the  weak-hearted." 

With  such  weaqons  the  advocates  of  truth  in  every  age 
have  been  attacked.  The  same  arguments  are  still  urged 
against  all  who  dare  to  present,  in  opposition  to  established 
errors,  the  plain  and  direct  teachings  of  God's  Word.  "  Who 
are  these  preachers  of  new  doctrines?"  exclaim  those  who 
desire  a  popular  religion.  "They  are  unlearned,  few  in 
numbers,  and  of  the  poorer  class.  Yet  they  claim  to  have 
the  truth,  and  to  be  the  chosen  people  of  God.  They  are 
ignorant  and  deceived.  How  greatly  superior  in  numbers 
and  influence  is  our  church!  How  many  great  and  learned 
men  are  among  us!  How  much  more  power  is  on  our  side! " 
These  are  the  arguments  that  have  a  telling  influence  upon 
the  world;  but  they  are  no  more  conclusive  now  than  in 
the  days  of  the  reformer. 

The  Reformation  did  not,  as  many  suppose,  end  with 
Luther.  It  is  to  be  continued  to  the  close  of  this  world's 
history.  Luther  had  a  great  work  to  do  in  reflecting  to 
others  the  light  which  God  had  permitted  to  shine  upon 
him;  yet  he  did  not  receive  all  the  light  which  was  to  be 
given  to  the  world.  From  that  time  to  this,  new  light  has 


LUTHER  BEFORE  TITE  DIET.  149 


been  continually  shining  upon  the  Scriptures,  and  new 
truths  have  been  constantly  unfolding. 

The  legate's  address  made  a  deep  impression  upon  the 
Diet.  There  was  no  Luther  present,  with  the  clear  and  con- 
vincing truths  of  God's  Word,  to  vanquish  the  papal  cham- 
pion. No  attempt  was  made  to  defend  the  reformer.  There 
was  manifest  a  general  disposition  not  only  to  condemn  him 
and  the  doctrines  which  he  taught,  but  if  possible  to  uproot 
the  heresy.  Rome  had  enjoyed  the  most  favorable  oppor- 
tunity to  defend  her  cause.  All  that  she  could  say  in  her 
own  vindication  had  been  said.  But  the  apparent  victory 
was  the  signal  of  defeat.  Henceforth  the  contrast  between 
truth  and  error  would  be  more  clearly  seen,  as  they  should 
take  the  field  in  open  warfare.  Never  from  that  day  would 
Rome  stand  as  secure  as  she  had  stood. 

While  most  of  the  members  of  the  Diet  would  not  have 
hesitated  to  yield  up  Luther  to  the  vengeance  of  Rome,  many 
of  them  saw  and  deplored  the  existing  depravity  in  the 
church,  and  desired  a  suppression  of  the  abuses  suffered  by 
the  German  people  in  consequence  of  the  corruption  and 
greed  of  the  hierarchy.  The  legate  had  presented  the  papal 
rule  in  the  most  favorable  light.  Now  the  Lord  moved 
upon  a  member  of  the  Diet  to  give  a  true  delineation  of  the 
effects  of  papal  tyranny.  With  noble  firmness,  Duke  George 
of  Saxony  stood  up  in  that  princely  assembly,  and  specified 
with  terrible  exactness  the  deceptions  and  abominations  of 
popery,  and  their  dire  results.  In  closing  he  said: — 

"These  are  but  a  few  of  the  abuses  which  cry  out  against 
Rome  for  redress.  All  shame  is  laid  aside,  and  one  object 
alone  incessantly  pursued :  money !  evermore  money !  so  that 
the  very  men  whose  duty  it  is  to  teach  the  truth,  utter  noth- 
ing but  falsehoods,  and  are  not  only  tolerated  but  rewarded; 
because  the  greater  their  lies,  the  greater  are  their  gains. 
This  is  the  foul  source  from  which  so  many  corrupt  streams 
flow  out  on  every  side.  Profligacy  and  avarice  go  hand  in 
hand."  "Alas!  it  is  the  scandal  caused  by  the  clergy  that 


150  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

plunges  so  many  poor  souls  into  everlasting  perdition.     A 
thorough  reform  must  be  effected." 

A  more  able  and  forcible  denunciation  of  the  papal  abuses 
could  not  have  been  presented  by  Luther  himself;  and  the 
fact  that  the  speaker  was  a  determined  enemy  of  the  re- 
former, gave  greater  influence  to  his  words. 

Had  the  eyes  of  the  assembly  been  opened,  they  would 
have  beheld  angels  of  God  in  the  midst  of  them,  shedding 
beams  of  light  athwart  the  darkness  of  error,  and  opening 
minds  and  hearts  to  the  reception  of  truth.  It  was  the 
power  of  the  God  of  truth  and  wisdom  that  controlled  even 
the  adversaries  of  the  Reformation,  and  thus  prepared  the 
way  for  the  great  work  about  to  be  accomplished.  Martin 
Luther  was  not  present;  but  the  voice  of  One  greater  than 
Luther  had  been  heard  in  that  assembly. 

A  committee  was  at  once  appointed  by  the  Diet  to  prepare 
an  enumeration  of  the  papal  oppressions  that  weighed  so 
heavily  on  the  German  people.  This  list,  containing  a 
hundred  and  one  specifications,  was  presented  to  the  emperor, 
with  a  request  that  he  would  take  immediate  measures  for 
the  correction  of  these  abuses.  "What  a  loss  of  Christian 
souls,"  said  the  petitioners,  "what  injustice,  what  extortion, 
are  the  daily  fruits  of  those  scandalous  practices  to  which 
the  spiritual  head  of  Christendom  affords  his  countenance. 
The  ruin  and  dishonor  of  our  nation  must  be  averted.  We 
therefore  very  humbly,  but  very  urgently,  beseech  you  to 
sanction  a  general  Reformation,  to  undertake  the  work,  and 
to  carry  it  through." 

The  council  now  demanded  the  reformer's  appearance 
before  them.  Notwithstanding  the  entreaties,  protests,  and 
threats  of  Aleander,  the  emperor  at  last  consented,  and 
Luther  was  summoned  to  appear  before  the  Diet.  With  the 
summons  was  issued  a  safe-conduct,  insuring  his  return  to  a 
place  of  security.  These  were  borne  to  Wittenberg  by  a 
herald,  who  was  commissioned  to  conduct  him  to  Worms. 
The  friends  of  Luther  were  terrified  and  distressed. 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  151 

Knowing  the  prejudice  and  enmity  against  him,  they 
feared  that  even  his  safe-conduct  would  not  be  respected, 
and  they  entreated  him  not  to  imperil  his  life.  He  replied: 
"The  papists  have  little  desire  to  see  me  at  Worms,  but  they 
long  for  my  condemnation  and  death.  It  matters  riot. 
Pray  not  for  me,  but  for  the  Word  of  God.  .  .  .  Christ 
will  give  me  his  Spirit  to  overcome  these  ministers  of  Satan. 
I  despise  them  while  I  live;  I  will  triumph  over  them  by 
my  death.  They  are  busy  at  Worms  about  compelling  me 
to  recant.  My  recantation  shall  be  this:  I  said  formerly 
that  the  pope  was  Christ's  vicar;  now  I  say  that  he  is  the 
adversary  of  the  Lord,  and  the  apostle  of  the  devil." 

Luther  was  not  to  make  his  perilous  journey  alone.  Be- 
sides the  imperial  messenger,  three  of  his  firmest  friends 
determined  to  accompany  him.  Melaiicthon  earnestly  de- 
sired to  join  them.  His  heart  was  knit  to  Luther's,  and  he 
yearned  to  follow  him,  if  need  be,  to  prison  or  to  death. 
But  his  entreaties  were  denied.  Should  Luther  perish,  the 
hopes  of  the  Reformation  must  center  upon  his  youthful 
co-laborer.  Said  the  reformer  as  he  parted  front  Melancthon, 
"  If  I  do  not  return,  and  my  enemies  put  me  to  death,  con- 
tinue to  teach;  stand  fast  in  the  truth.  Labor  in  my  stead; 
...  if  thy  life  be  spared,  my  death  will  matter  little." 
Students  and  citizens  who  had  gathered  to  witness  Luther's 
departure  were  deeply  moved.  A  multitude  whose  hearts 
had  been  touched  by  the  gospel,  bade  him  farewell  with 
weeping.  Thus  the  reformer  and  his  companions  set  out 
from  Wittenberg. 

On  the  journey  they  saw  that  the  minds  of  the  people 
were  oppressed  by  gloomy  forebodings.  At  some  towns  no 
honors  were  proffered  them.  As  they  stopped  for  the  night, 
a  friendly  priest  expressed  his  fears  by  holding  up  before 
Luther  the  portrait  of  an  Italian  reformer  who  had  suffered 
martyrdom.  The  next  day  they  learned  that  Luther's  writ- 
ings had  been  condemned  at  Worms.  Imperial  messengers 
were  proclaiming  the  emperor's  decree,  and  calling  upon 


152  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

the  people  to  bring  the  proscribed  works  to  the  magistrates. 
The  herald,  fearing  for  Luther's  safety  at  the  council,  and 
thinking  that  already  his  resolution  might  be  shaken,  asked 
if  he  still  wished  to  go  forward.  He  answered,  "  I  will  go  on, 
though  I  should  be  put  under  interdict  in  every  town." 

At  Erfurt,  Luther  was  received  with  honor.  Surrounded 
by  admiring  crowds,  he  passed  through  the  streets  that  he 
had  often  traversed  with  his  beggar's  wallet.  He  visited  his 
convent  cell,  and  thought  upon  the  struggles  through  which 
the  light  now  flooding  Germany  had  been  shed  upon  his 
soul.  He  was  urged  to  preach.  This  he  had  been  forbidden 
to  do,  but  the  herald  granted  him  permission,  and  the  friar 
who  had  once  been  made  the  drudge  of  the  convent,  now 
entered  the  pulpit. 

To  a  crowded  assembly  he  spoke  from  the  words  of  Christ, 
"Peace  be  unto  you."  "Philosophers,  doctors,  and  writers," 
he  said,  "  have  endeavored  to  teach  men  the  way  to  obtain 
everlasting  life,  and  they  have  not  succeeded.  I  will  now 
tell  it  to  you."  "God  has  raised  one  Man  from  the  dead,  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  he  might  destroy  death,  expiate  sin, 
and  shut  the  gates  of  hell.  This  is  the  work  of  salvation. 
Christ  has  vanquished!  This  is  the  joyful  news!  And  we 
are  saved  by  his  work,  and  not  by  our  own.  .  .  .  Our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  said,  'Peace  be  unto  you!  behold  my 
hands' — that  is  to  say,  Behold,  0  man!  it  is  I,  I  alone,  who 
have  taken  away  thy  sins,  an<J  ransomed  thee;  and  now 
thou  hast  peace,  saith  the  Lord." 

He  continued,  showing  that  true  faith  will  be  manifested 
by  a  holy  life.  "Since  God  has  saved  us,  let  us  so  order  our 
works  that  he  may  take  pleasure  in  them.  Art  thou  rich? 
—let  thy  riches  be  the  supply  of  other  men's  poverty.  Art 
thou  poor? — let  thy  service  minister  to  the  rich.  If  thy 
labor  is  for  thyself  alone,  the  service  thou  offerest  to  God  is 
a  mere  pretense." 

The  people  listened  as  if  spell-bound.  The  bread  of  life 
was  broken  to  those  starving  souls.  Christ  was  lifted  up 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  153 

before  them  as  above  popes,  legates,  emperors,  and  kings. 
Luther  made  no  reference  to  his  own.  perilous  position.  He 
did  not  seek  to  make  himself  the  object  of  thought  or  sym- 
pathy. In  the  contemplation  of  Christ,  he  had  lost  sight  of 
self.  Ho  hid  behind  the  Man  of  Calvary,  seeking  only  to 
present  Jesus  as  the  sinner's  Redeemer. 

As  the  reformer  proceeded  on  his  journey,  he  was  every- 
where regarded  with  great  interest.  An  eager  multitude 
thronged  about  him ;  and  friendly  voices  warned  him  of  the 
purpose  of  the  Romanists.  "  You  will  be  burned  alive,"  said 
they,  "  and  your  body  reduced  to  ashes,  as  was  that  of  John 
Huss."  Luther  answered,  "Though  they  should  kindle  a 
fire  all  the  way  from  Worms  to  Wittenberg,  whose  flames 
should  rise  up  to  heaven,  I  would  go  through  it  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord,  and  stand  before  them;  I  would  enter  the  jaws 
of  this  behemoth,  and  break  his  teeth,  confessing  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ." 

The  news  of  his  approach  to  Worms  created  great  com- 
motion. His  friends  trembled  for  his  safety;  his  enemies 
feared  for  the  success  of  their  cause.  Strenuous  efforts  were 
made  to  dissuade  him  from  entering  the  city.  At  the  insti- 
gation of  the  papists  he  was  urged  to  repair  to  the  castle  of 
a  friendly  knight,  where,  it  was  declared,  all  difficulties  could 
be  amicably  adjusted.  Friends  endeavored  to  excite  his 
fears  by  describing  the  dangers  that  threatened  him.  All 
their  efforts  failed.  Luther,  still  unshaken;  declared,  "  Though 
there  should  be  as  many  devils  at  Worms  as  there  are  tiles 
on  its  roofs,  I  would  enter." 

Upon  his  arrival  at  Worms,  a  vast  crowd  flocked  to  the 
gates  to  welcome  him.  So  great  a  concourse  had  not  as- 
sembled to  greet  the  emperor  himself.  The  excitement  was 
intense,  and  from  the  midst  of  the  throng  a  shrill  and  plaint- 
ive voice  chanted  a  funeral  dirge,  as  a  warning  to  Luther  of 
the  fate  that  awaited  him.  "  God  will  be  my  defense,"  said 
he,  as  he  alighted  from  his  carriage. 

The  papists  had  not  believed  that  Luther  would  really 


154  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

venture  to  appear  at  Worms,  and  his  arrival  filled  them 
with  consternation.  The  emperor  immediately  summoned 
his  councillors  to  consider  what  course  should  be  pursued. 
One  of  the  bishops,  a  rigid  papist,  declared :  "  We  have  long 
consulted  on  this  matter.  Let  your  majesty  rid  yourself  of 
this  man  at  once.  Did  not  Sigismund  bring  John  Huss  to 
the  stake?  We  are  under  no  obligation  either  to  give  or  to 
observe  the  safe-conduct  of  a  heretic."  "Not  so,"  said  the 
emperor;  "we  must  keep  our  promise."  It  was  therefore 
decided  that  the  reformer  should  be  heard. 

All  the  city  were  eager  to  see  this  remarkable  man,  and 
a  throng  of  visitors  soon  filled  his  lodgings.  Luther  had 
scarcely  recovered  from  his  recent  illness;  he  was  wearied 
from  the  journey,  which  had  occupied  two  full  weeks;  he 
must  prepare  to  meet  the  momentous  events  of  the  morrow, 
and  he  needed  quiet  and  repose.  But  so  great  was  the 
desire  to  see  him,  that  he  had  enjoyed  only  a  few  hours' 
rest,  when  noblemen,  knights,  priests,  and  citizens  gathered 
3agerly  about  him.  Among  these  were  many  of  the  nouies 
who  had  so  boldly  demanded  of  the  emperor  a  reform  of 
ecclesiastical  abuses,  and  who,  says  Luther,  "  had  all  been 
freed  by  my  gospel."  Enemies,  as  well  as  friends,  came  to 
look  upon  the  dauntless  monk,  but  he  received  them  with 
unshaken  calmness,  replying  to  all  with  dignity  and  wisdom. 
His  bearing  was  firm  and  courageous.  His  pale,  thin  face, 
marked  with  the  traces  of  toil  and  illness,  wore  a  kindly 
and  even  joyous  expression.  The  solemnity  and  deep  ear- 
nestness of  his  words  gave  him  a  power  that  even  his  ene- 
mies could  not  wholly  withstand.  Both  friends  and  foes 
were  filled  with  wonder.  Some  were  convinced  that  a  divine 
influence  attended  him;  others  declared,  as  had  the  Phari- 
sees concerning  Christ,  "  He  hath  a  devil." 

On  the  following  day,  Luther  was  summoned  to  attend 
the  Diet.  An  imperial  officer  was  appointed  to  conduct  him 
t<»  the  hall  of  audience;  yet  it  was  with  difficulty  that  he 
reached  the  place.  Every  avenue  was  crowded  with  spec- 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  155 

tators,  eager  to  look  upon  the  monk  who  had  dared  resist 
the  authority  of  the  pope. 

As  he  was  about  to  enter  the  presence  of  his  judges,  an 
old  general,  the  hero  of  many  battles,  said  to  him  kindly, 
"  Poor  monk !  poor  monk !  thou  hast  a  march  and  a  struggle 
to  go  through,  such  as  neither  I  nor  many  other  captains 
have  ever  known  in  our  most  bloody  battles.  But  if  thy 
cause  be  just,  and  thou  art  sure  of  it,  go  forward  in  God's 
name,  and  fear  nothing !  He  will  not  forsake  thee." 

At  length  Luther  stood  before  the  council.  The  emperor 
occupied  the  throne.  He  was  surrounded  by  the  most  illus- 
trious personages  in  the  empire.  Never  had  any  man  ap- 
peared in  the  presence  of  a  more  imposing  assembly  than 
that  before  which  Martin  Luther  was  to  answer  for  his  faith. 
"This  appearance  was  of  itself  a  signal  victory  over  the 
papacy.  The  pope  had  condemned  the  man,  and  he  was 
now  standing  before  a  tribunal  which,  by  this  very  act,  set 
itself  above  the  pope.  The  pope  had  laid  him  under  an 
interdict,  and  cut  him  off  from  all  human  society,  and  yet 
he  was  summoned  in  respectful  language,  and  received 
before  the  most  august  assembly  in  the  world.  The  pope 
had  condemned  him  to  perpetual  silence,  and  he  was  now 
about  to  speak  before  thousands  of  attentive  hearers  drawn 
together  from  the  furthest  parts  of  Christendom.  An  immense 
revolution  had  thus  been  effected  by  Luther's  instrumen- 
tality. Rome  was  already  descending  from  her  throne,  and 
it  was  the  voice  of  a  monk  that  caused  this  humiliation." 

In  the  presence  of  that  powerful  and  titled  assembly,  the 
lowrly-born  reformer  seemed  awed  and  embarrassed.  Sev- 
eral of  the  princes,  observing  his  emotion,  approached  him, 
and  one  of  them  whispered,  "  Fear  not  them  which  kill  the 
body,  but  are  not  able  to  kill  the  soul."  Another  said, 
"When  ye  shall  be  brought  before  governors  and  kings  for 
My  sake,  it  shall  be  given  you,  by  the  Spirit  of  your  Father, 
what  ye  shall  say."  Thus  the  words  of  Christ  were  brought 
by  the  world's  great  men  to  strengthen  his  servant  in  the 
hour  of  trial 


156  THE  GREAT  C 


Luther  was  conducted  to  a  position  directly  in  front  of 
the  emperor's  throne.  A  deep  silence  fell  upon  the  crowded 
assembly.  Then  an  imperial  officer  arose,  and,  pointing  to 
a  collection  of  Luther's  writings,  demanded  that  the  reformer 
answer  two  questions, — whether  he  acknowledged  them  as 
his,  and  whether  he  proposed  to  retract  the  opinions  which 
he  had  therein  advanced.  The  titles  of  the  books  having 
been  read,  Luther  replied  that  as  to  the  first  question,  he 
acknowledged  the  books  to  be  his.  "  As  to  the  second,"  he 
said,  "  seeing  it  is  a  question  which  concerns  faith,  the  sal- 
vation of  souls,  and  the  Word  of  God,  which  is  the  greatest 
and  most  precious  treasure  either  in  Heaven  or  earth,  it 
would  be  rash  and  perilous  for  me  to  reply  without  reflec- 
tion. I  might  affirm  less  than  the  circumstances  demand, 
or  more  than  truth  requires;  in  either  case  I  should  fall 
under  the  sentence  of  Christ:  'Whosoever  shall  deny  me 
before  men,  him  will  I  also  deny  before  my  Father  which  is 
in  Heaven.'1  For  this  reason  I  entreat  your  imperial 
majesty,  with  all  humility,  to  allow  me  time,  that  I  may 
answer  without  offending  against  the  Word  of  God." 

In  making  this  request,  Luther  moved  wisely.  His  course 
convinced  the  assembly  that  he  did  not  act  from  passion  or 
impulse.  Such  calmness  and  self-command,  unexpected  in 
one  who  had  shown  himself  bold  and  uncompromising, 
added  to  his  power,  and  enabled  him  afterward  to  answer 
with  a  prudence,  decision,  wisdom,  and  dignity,  that  sur- 
prised and  disappointed  his  adversaries,  and  rebuked  their 
insolence  and  pride. 

The  next  day  he  was  to  appear  to  render  his  final  answer. 
For  a  time  his  heart  sunk  within  him  as  he  contemplated 
the  forces  that  were  C9mbined  against  the  truth.  His  faith 
faltered;  fearfulness  and  trembling  came  upon  him,  and 
horror  overwhelmed  him.  Dangers  multiplied  before  him, 
his  enemies  seemed  about  to  triumph,  and  the  powers  of 
darkness  to  prevail.  Clouds  gathered  about  him,  and  seemed 
to  separate  him  from  God.  lie  longed  for  the  assurance 

1Matt.  10:33. 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  157 


that  the  Lord  of  hosts  would  be  with  him.  In  anguish  of 
spirit  he  threw  himself  with  his  face  upon  the  earth,  and 
poured  out  those  broken,  heart-rending  cries,  which  none 
but  God  can  fully  understand. 

"0  God,"  he  pleaded,  "Almighty  God  everlasting!  How 
dreadful  is  the  world!  Behold  how  it  opens  its  mouth  to 
swallow  me  up,  and  how  small  is  my  faith  in  thee !  ...  If 
I  am  to  depend  upon  any  strength  of  this  world — all  is 
over.  .  .  .  The  knell  is  struck.  .  .  .  Sentence  is 
gone  forth.  ...  0  thou  my  God!  help  me  against  all 
the  wisdom  of  this  world.  Do  this,  I  beseech  thee  .  .  . 
by  thine  own  mighty  power.  .  .  .  The  work  is  not  mine, 
but  thine.  I  have  no  business  here.  ...  I  have  nothing 
to  contend  for  with  the  great  men  of  the  world.  .  .  .  But 
the  cause  is  thine,  .  .  .  and  it  is  righteous  and  everlasting. 
...  0  faithful  and  unchangeable  God !  I  lean  not  upon 
man.  .  .  .  Whatever  is  from  man  is  tottering,  whatever 
proceeds  from  him  must  fall.  .  .  .  Thou  hast  chosen  me 
for  this  work.  .  .  .  Therefore,  0  God,  accomplish  thine 
own  will ;  forsake  me  not,  for  the  sake  of  thy  well-beloved 
Son,  Jesus  Christ,  my  defense,  my  buckler,  and  my  strong- 
hold." 

An  all-wise  Providence  had  permitted  Luther  to  realize  his 
peril,  that  he  might  not  trust  to  his  own  strength,  and  rush 
presumptuously  into  danger.  Yet  it  was  not  the  fear  of  per- 
sonal suffering,  a  dread  of  torture  or  death,  which  seemed 
immediately  impending,  that  overwhelmed  him  with  its  ter- 
ror. He  had  come  to  the  crisis,  and  he  felt  his  insufficiency 
to  meet  it.  Through  his  weakness  the  cause  of  truth  might 
suffer  loss.  Not  for  his  own  safety,  but  for  the  triumph  of 
the  gospel  did  he  wrestle  with  God.  Like  Israel's,  in  that 
night  struggle  beside  the  lonely  stream,  was  the  anguish  and 
conflict  of  his  soul.  Like  Israel,  he  prevailed  with  God.  In 
his  utter  helplessness  his  faith  fastened  upon  Christ,  the 
mighty  deliverer.  He  was  strengthened  with  the  assurance 
that  he  would  not  appear  alone  before  the  council.  Peace 


THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

returned  to  his  soul,  and  he  rejoiced  that  he  was  permitted 
to  uplift  the  Word  of  God  before  the  rulers  of  the  nation. 

With  his  mind  stayed  upon  God,  Luther  prepared  for  the 
struggle  before  him.  He  thought  upon  the  plan  of  his  an- 
swer, examined  passages  in  his  own  writings,  and  drew  from 
the  Holy  Scriptures  suitable  proofs  to  sustain  his  positions. 
Then,  laying  his  left  hand  on  the  sacred  volume,  which  was 
open  before  him,  he  lifted  his  right  hand  to  heaven,  and 
\-owed  "to  adhere  constantly  to  the  gospel,  and  to  confess  his 
faith  freely,  even  though  he  should  be  called  to  seal  his  tes- 
timony with  his  blood." 

AY  hen  he  was  again  ushered  into  the  presence  of  the  Diet, 
his  countenance  bore  no  trace  of  fear  or  embarrassment. 
Calm  and  peaceful,  yet  grandly  brave  and  noble,  he  stood 
as  God's  witness  among  the  great  ones  of  the  earth.  The 
imperial  officer  now  demanded  his  decision  as  to  whether 
he  desired  to  retract  his  doctrines.  Luther  made  his  an- 
swer in  a  subdued  and  humble  tone,  without  violence  or 
passion.  His  demeanor  was  diffident  and  respectful;  yet  he 
manifested  a  confidence  and  joy  that  surprised  the  assembly. 

"Most  serene  emperor,  illustrious  princes,  most  clement 
lords,"  said  Luther,  "  I  this  day  appear  before  you  in  all  hu- 
mility, according  to  your  command;  and  I  implore  your 
majesty,  and  your  august  highnesses,  by  the  mercies  of  God, 
to  listen  with  favor  to  the  defense  of  a  cause  which  I  am 
well  assured  is  just  and  right.  If  in  my  reply  I  do  not  use 
the  just  ceremonial  of  a  court,  pardon  me,  for  I  am  not 
familiar  with  its  usages.  I  am  but  a  poor  monk,  a  child  of 
the  cell,  and  I  have  labored  only  for  the  glory  of  God." 

Then,  proceeding  to  the  question,  he  stated  that  his  pub- 
lished works  were  not  all  of  the  same  character.  In  some 
he  had  treated  of  faith  and  good  works,  and  even  his  ene- 
mies declared  them  not  only  harmless  but  profitable.  To 
retract  these  would-be  to  condemn  truths" which  all  parties 
confessed.  The  second  class  consisted  of  \\rilingsexposing 
the  corruptions  and  abuses  of  the  papacy.  To  revoke  these 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  159 

works  would  strengthen  the  tyranny  of  Home,  and  open  a 
wider  door  to  many  and  great  impieties.  In  the  third  class 
of  his  books  he  had  attacked  individuals  who  had  defended 
existing  evils.  Concerning  these  he  freely  confessed  that  he 
had  been  more  violent  than  was  becoming.  He  did  not 
claim  to  be  free  from  fault;  but  even  these  books  he  could 
not  revoke,  for  such  a  course  would  embolden  the  enemies 
of  truth,  and  they  would  then  take  occasion  to  crush  God's 
people  with  still  greater  cruelty. 

"But  as  I  am  a  mere  man,  and  not  God,"  he  continued, 
"  I  will  defend  myself  as  did  Christ,  who  said,  '  If  I  have 
spoken  evil,  bear  witness  of  the  evil/  By  the  mercy  of  God, 
I  implore  your  imperial  'majesty,  or  any  one  else  who 
can,  whoever  he  may  be,  to  prove  to  me  from  the  writ- 
ings of  the  prophets  and  apostles  that  I  am  in  error.  As 
soon  as  I  shall  be  convinced,  I  will  instantly  retract  all  my 
errors,  and  will  be  the  first  to  cast  my  books  into  the  fire. 
"What  I  have  just  said,  will  show  that  I  have  considered 
and  weighed  the  dangers  to  which  I  am  exposing  myself; 
but  far  from  being  dismayed  by  them,  I  rejoice  exceedingly 
to  see  the  gospel  this  day,  as  of  old,  a  cause  of  trouble  and 
dissension.  This  is  the  character,  the  destiny,  of  God's 
Word.  Said  Christ, '  I  came  not  to  send  peace,  but  a  sword/ l 
God  is  wonderful  and  terrible  in  his  counsels.  Let  us  have 
a  care  lest  in  our  endeavors  to  arrest  discords  we  be  found  to 
fight  against  the  holy  Word  of  God,  and  bring  down  upon 
our  heads  a  frightful  deluge  of  inextricable  dangers,  pres- 
ent disaster,  and  everlasting  desolation.  ...  I  might 
cite  examples  drawn  from  the  oracles  of  God.  I  might 
speak  of  Pharaohs,  of  kings  of  Babylon,  or  of  Israel,  who 
were  never  more  contributing  to  their  own  ruin  than  when, 
by  measures  in  appearance  most  prudent,  they  thought  to 
establish  their  authority.  God  '  removeth  the  mountains,  and 
they  know  not.'"2 

Luther  had  spoken  in  German;  he  was  now  requested  to 

13   *  Matt.  10: 34.  a  Job  9:5. 


160  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

repeat  the  same  words  in  Latin.  Though  exhausted  by  the 
previous  effort,  he  complied,  and  again  delivered  his  speech, 
with  the  same  clearness  and  energy  as  at  the  first.  God's 
providence  directed  in  this  matter.  The  minds  of  many  of 
the  princes  were  so  blinded  by  error  and  superstition  that 
at  the  first  delivery  they  did  not  see  the  force  of  Luther's 
reasoning;  but  the  repetition  enabled  them  to  perceive  clearly 
the  points  presented. 

.Those  who  stubbornly  closed  their  eyes  to  the  light,  and 
determined  not  to  be  convinced  of  the  truth,  were  enraged 
at  the  power  of  Luther's  words.  As  he  ceased  speaking, 
the  spokesman  of  the  Diet  said  angrily,  "  You  have  not  an- 
swered the  question.  A  clear  and  express  reply  is  demanded. 
"Will  you  or  will  you  not  retract?" 

The  reformer  answered :  "  Since  your  most  serene  majesty 
and  the  princes  require  a  simple,  clear,  and  direct  answer,  I 
will  give  one,  and  it  is  this :  I  cannot  submit  my  faith  either  to 
the  pope  or  to  the  councils,  because  it  is  as  clear  as  noonday 
that  they  have  often  fallen  into  error,  and  even  into  glaring 
inconsistency  with  themselves.  If,  then,  I  am  not  convinced 
by  proof  from  Holy  Scripture,  or  by  cogent  reasons;  if  I  am 
not  satisfied  by  the  very  texts  that  I  have  cited,  and  if  my 
judgment  is  not  in  this  way  brought  into  subjection  to  God's 
Word,  I  neither  can  nor  will  retract  anything;  for  it  cannot 
be  right  for  a  Christian  to  speak  against  his  conscience. 
Here  I  take  my  stand;  I  cannot  do  otherwise.  God  be  my 
help !  Amen." 

Thus  stood  this  righteous  man,  upon  the  sure  foundation 
of  the  Word  of  God.  The  light  of  Heaven  illuminated 
his  countenance.  His  greatness  and  purity  of  character,  his 
peace  and  joy  of  heart,  were  manifest  to  all  as  he  testified 
against  the  power  of  error,  and  witnessed  to  the  superiority 
of  that  faith  that  overcomes  the  world. 

The  whole  assembly  were  for  a  time  speechless  with 
amazement.  At  his  first  answer,  Luther  had  spoken  in  a 
low  tone,  with  a  respectful,  almost  submissive  bearing.  The 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  161 

Romanists  had  interpreted  this  as  evidence  that  his  courage 
was  beginning  to  fail.  They  regarded  the  request  for  delay 
as  merely  the  prelude  to  his  recantation.  Charles  himself, 
noting,  half  contemptuously,  the  monk's  worn  frame,  his 
plain  attire,  and  tne  simplicity  of  his  address,  had  declared, 
"  This  man  will  never  make  a  heretic  of  me."  The  courage 
and  firmness  which  he  now  displayed,  as  well  as  the  power 
and  clearness  of  his  reasoning,  filled  all  parties  with  sur- 
prise. The  emperor, moved  to  admiration,  exclaimed,  "The 
monk  speaks  with  intrepid  heart  and  unshaken  courage." 
Many  of  the  German  princes  looked  with  pride  and  joy 
upon  this  representative  of  their  nation. 

The  partisans  of  Rome  had  been  worsted;  their  cause 
appeared  in  a  most  unfavorable  light.  They  sought  to 
maintain  their  power,  not  by  appealing  to  the  Scriptures, 
but  by  a  resort  to  threats,  Rome's  unfailing  argument. 
Said  the  spokesman  of  the  Diet,  "  If  you  do  not  retract,  the 
emperor  and  the  States  of  the  empire  will  proceed  to  con- 
sider how  to  deal  with  an  obstinate  heretic." 

Luther's  friends,  who  had  with  great  joy  listened  to  his 
noble  defense,  trembled  at  these  words ;  but  the  doctor  him- 
self said  calmly,  "  May  God  be  my  helper !  for  I  can  retract 
nothing." 

He  was  directed  to .  withdraw  from  the  Diet,  while  the 
princes  consulted  together.  It  was  felt  that  a  great  crisis 
had  come.  Luther's  persistent  refusal  to  submit,  might 
affect  the  history  of  the  church  for  ages.  It  was  decided  to 
give  him  one  more  opportunity  to  retract.  For  the  last 
time  he  was  brought  into  the  assembly.  Again  the  question 
was  put,  whether  he  would  renounce  his  doctrines.  "  I  have 
no  other  answer  to  give,"  he  said,  "than  I  have  already 
given."  It  was  evident  that  he  could  not  be  induced,  either 
by  promises  or  threats,  to  yield  to  the  mandate  of  Rome. 

The  papist  leaders  were  chagrined  that  their  power,  which 
had  caused  kings  and  nobles  to  tremble,  should  be  thus 
despised  by  a  humble  monk;  they  longed  to  make  him  feel 


162  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

their  wrath  by  torturing  his  life  away.  But  Luther,  under- 
standing his  danger,  had  spoken  to  all  with  Christian  dig- 
nity and  calmness.  His  words  had  been  free  from  pride, 
passion,  and  misrepresentation.  He  had  lost  sight  of  him- 
self, and  of  the  great  men  surrounding  .him,  and  felt  only 
that  lie  was  in  the  presence  of  One  infinitely  superior  to 
popes,  prelates,  kings,  and  emperors.  Christ  had  spoken 
through  Luther's  testimony  with  a  power  and  grandeur  that 
for  the  time  inspired  both  friends  and  foes  with  awe  and 
wonder.  The  Spirit  of  God  had  been  present  in  that  council, 
impressing  the  hearts  of  the  chiefs  of  the  empire.  Several 
of  the  princes  boldly  acknowledged  the  justice  of  Luther's 
cause.  Many  were  convinced  of  the  truth ;  but  with  some  the 
impressions  received  were  not  lasting.  There  was  another 
class  who  did  not  at  the  time  express  their  convictions,  but 
who,  having  searched  the  Scriptures  for  themselves,  at  a 
future  time  became  fearless  supporters  of  the  Reformation. 

The  elector  Frederick  had  looked  forward  anxiously  to 
Luther's  appearance  before  the  Diet,  and  with  deep  emotion 
he  listened  to  his  speech.  With  joy  and  pride  he  witnessed 
the  doctor's  courage,  firmness,  and  self-possession,  and  deter- 
mined to  stand  more  firmly  in  his  defense.  He  contrasted 
the  parties  in  contest,  and  saw  that  the  wisdom  of  popes, 
kings,  and  prelates  had  been  brought  to  naught  by  the 
power  of  truth.  The  papacy  had  sustained  a  defeat  which 
would  be  felt  among  all  nations  and  in  all  ages. 

As  the  legate  perceived  the  effect  produced  by  Luther's 
speech,  he  feared,  as  never  before,  for  the  security  of  the 
Romish  power,  and  resolved  to  employ  every  means  at  his 
command  to  effect  the  reformer's  overthrow.  With  all  the 
eloquence  and  diplomatic  skill  for  which  he  was  so  emi- 
nently distinguished,  he  represented  to  the  youthful  emperor 
the  folly  and  danger  of  sacrificing,  in  the  cause  of  an  insig- 
nificant monk,  the  friendship  and  support  of  the  powerful 
see  of  Rome. 

His  words  were  not  without  effect.     On  the  day  following 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  163 

Luther's  answer,  Charles  caused  a  message  to  be  presented 
to  the  Diet,  announcing  his  determination  to  carry  out  the 
policy  of  his  predecessors  to  maintain  and  protect  the  Cath- 
olic religion.  Since  Luther  'had  refused  to  renounce  his 
errors,  the  most  vigorous  measures  should  be  employed 
against  him  and  the  heresies  he  taught.  "A  single  monk, 
led  astray  by  his  own  madness,  erects  himself  against  the 
faith  of  Christendom.  I  will  sacrifice  my  kingdoms,  my 
power,  my  friends,  my  treasure,  my  body  and  blood,  my 
thoughts,  and  my  life,  to  stay  the  further  progress  of  this 
impiety.  I  am  about  to  dismiss  the  Augustine  Luther,  for- 
bidding him  to  cause  the  least  disturbance  among  the  peo- 
ple. I  will  then  take  measures  against  him  and  his  adher- 
ents, as  open  heretics,  by  excommunication,  interdict,  and 
every  means  necessary  to  their  destruction.  I  call  on  the 
members  of  the  States  to  comport  themselves  like  faithful 
Christians."  Nevertheless  the  emperor  declared  that  Lu- 
ther's safe-conduct  must  be  respected,  and  that  before  proceed- 
ings against  him  could  be  instituted,  he  must  be  allowed  to 
reach  his  home  in  safety. 

Two  conflicting  opinions  were  now  urged  by  the  members 
of  the  Diet.  The  emissaries  and  representatives  of  the  pope 
again  demanded  that  the  reformer's  safe-conduct  should  be 
disregarded.  "The  Rhine,"  they  said,  "should  receive  his 
ashes,  as  it  received  those  of  John  Huss  a  century  ago."  But 
princes  of  Germany,  though  themselves  papists  and  avowed 
enemies  to  Luther,  protested  against  such  a  breach  of  public 
faith,  as  a  stain  upon  the  honor  of  the  nation.  They  pointed 
to  the  calamities  which  had  followed  the  death  of  Huss, 
and  declared  that  they  dared  not  call  down  upon  Germany, 
and  upon  the  head  of  their  youthful  emperor,  a  repetition 
of  these  terrible  evils. 

Charles  himself,  in  answer  to  the  base  proposal,  said  that 
though  faith  should  be  banished  from  all  the  earth,  it  ought 
to  find  refuge  with  princes.  *  He  was  still  further  urged  by 
the  most  bitter  of  Luther's  popish  enemies  to  deal  with  the 


164  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


reformer  as  Sigismund-  had  dealt  with  Huss — abandon  him 
to  the  mercies  of  the  church;  but,  recalling  the  scene  when 
Huss  in  public  assembly  had  pointed  to  his  chains  and 
reminded  the  monarch  of  his  plighted  faith,  Charles  V. 
declared,  "I  would  not  like  to  blush  like  Sigismund." 

Yet  Charles  had  deliberately  rejected  the  truths  presented 
by  Luther.  "  I  am  firmly  resolved  to  tread  in  the  footsteps 
of  my  ancestors,"  wrote  the  monarch.  He  had  decided  that 
he  would  not  step  out  of  the  path  of  custom,  even  to  walk  in 
the  ways  of  truth  and  righteousness.  Because  his  fathers 
did,  he  would  uphold  the  papacy,  with  all  its  cruelty  and 
corruption.  Thus  he  took  his  position,  refusing  to  accept 
any  light  in  advance  of  what  his  fathers  had  received,  or 
to  perform  any  duty  that  they  had  not  performed. 

There  are  many  at  the  present  day  thus  clinging  to  the 
customs  and  traditions  of  their  fathers.  When  the  Lord 
sends  them  additional  light,  they  refuse  to  accept  it,  because, 
not  having  been  granted  to  their  fathers,  it  was  not  receive 
by  them.  We  are  not  placed  where  our  fathers  were ;  con- 
sequently our  duties  and  responsibilities  are  not  the  same 
as  theirs.  We  shall  not  be  approved  of  God  in  looking  to 
the  example  of  our  fathers  to  determine  our  duty  instead  of 
searching  the  Word  of  truth  for  ourselves.  Our  responsi- 
bility is  greater  than  was  that  of  our  ancestors.  We  are 
accountable  for  the  light  which  they  received,  and  which 
was  handed  down  as  an  inheritance  for  us,  and  we  are  ac- 
countable also  for  the  additional  light  which  is  now  shining 
upon  us  from  the  Word  of  God. 

Said  Christ  of  the  unbelieving  Jews,  '  If  I  had  not  come 
and  spoken  unto  them,  they  had  not  had  sin ;  but  now  they 
have  no  cloak  for  their  sin." l  The  same  divine  power  had 
spoken  through  Luther  to  the  emperor  and  princes  of  Ger- 
many. And  as  the  light  shone  forth  from  God's  Word,  his 
Spirit  pleaded  for  the  last  time  with  many  in  that  assembly. 
As  Pilate,  centuries  before,  permitted  pride  and  popularity 
to  close  his  heart  against  the  world's  Redeemer;  as  the 

iJolm  15:22. 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  165 

trembling  Felix  bade  the  messenger  of  truth,  "  Go  thy  way 
for  this  time;  when  I  have  a  convenient  season,  I  will  call 
for  thee;"1  as  the  proud  Agrippa  confessed,  "  Almost  thou 
persuadest  me  to  be  a  Christian," 2  yet  turned  away  from  the 
Heaven-sent  message, — so  had  Charles  V.,  yielding  to  the 
dictates  of  worldly  pride  and  policy,  decided  to  reject  the 
light  of  truth. 

Rumors  of  the  designs  against  Luther  were  widely  circu- 
lated, causing  great  excitement  throughout  the  city.  The 
reformer  had  made  many  friends,  who,  knowing  the  treach- 
erous cruelty  of  Rome  toward  all  that  dared  expose  her  cor- 
ruptions, resolved  that  he  should  not  be  sacrificed.  Hundreds 
of  nobles  pledged  themselves  to  protect  him.  Not  a  few 
openly  denounced  the  royal  message  as  evincing  a  weak 
submission  to  the  controlling  power  of  Rome.  On  the  gates 
of  houses  and  in  public  peaces,  placards  were  posted,  some 
condemning  and  others  sustaining  Luther.  On  one  of  these 
were  written  merely  the  significant  words  of  the  wise  man, 
"Woe  to  thee,  0  land,  when  thy  king  is  a  child."3  The  pop- 
ular enthusiasm  in  Luther's  favor  throughout  all  Germany 
convinced  both  the  emperor  and  the  Diet  that  any  injustice 
shown  him  would  endanger  the  peace  of  the  empire,  and 
even  the  stability  of  the  throne. 

Frederick  of  Saxony  maintained  a  studied  reserve,  care- 
fully concealing  his  real  feelings  toward  the  reformer,  while 
at  the  same  time  he  guarded  him  with  tireless  vigilance, 
watching  all  his  movements  and  all  those  of  his  enemies. 
But  there  were  many  who  made  no  attempt  to  conceal 
their  sympathy  with  Luther.  He  was  visited  by  princes, 
counts,  barons,  and  other  persons  of  distinction,  both  lay 
and  ecclesiastical.  "  The  doctor's  little  room,"  wrote  Spalatin, 
"could  not  contain  all  who  presented  themselves."  The  peo^ 
pie  gazed  upon  him  as  if  he  were  more  than  human.  Even 
those  who  had  no  faith  in  his  doctrines,  could  not  but  admire 
that  lofty  integrity  which  led  him  to  brave  death  rather 
than  violate  his  conscience. 

:25.  2Acts  26:28.  3Eccl.  10:16. 


166  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Earnest  efforts  were  made  to  obtain  Luther's  consent  to  a 
compromise  with  Rome.  Nobles  and  princes  represented  to 
him  that  if  he  persisted  in  setting  up  his  own  judgment 
against  that  of  the  church  and  the  councils,  he  would  soon 
be  banished  from  the  empire,  and  then  would  have  no  de- 
fense. To  this  appeal  Luther  answered :  "  It  is  impossible 
to  preach  the  gospel  of  Christ  without  offense.  Why,  then, 
should  the  fear  of  danger  separate  me  from  the  Lord  and 
that  divine  Word  which  alone  is  truth?  No ;  I  would  rather 
give  up  my  body,  my  blood,  and  my  life." 

Again  he  was  urged  to  submit  to  the  judgment  of  the 
emperor,  and  then  he  would  have  nothing  to  fear.  "  I  con- 
sent," said  he  in  reply,  "with  all  my  heart,  that  the  emperor, 
the  princes,  and  even  the  humblest  Christian,  should  exam- 
ine and  judge  my  writings;  but  on  one  condition,  that  they 
take  God's  Word  for  their  guide.  Men  have  nothing  to  do 
but  to  render  obedience  to  that.  My  conscience  is  in  de- 
pendence upon  that  Word,  and  I  am  the  bounden  subject  of 
its  authority." 

To  another  appeal  he  said,  "  I  consent  to  forego  my  safe- 
conduct,  and  resign  my  person  and  my  life  to  the  emperor's 
disposal;  but  as  to  the  Word  of  God — never!"  He  stated 
his  willingness  to  submit  to  the  decision  of  a  general  coun- 
cil, but  only  on  condition  that  the  council  be  required  to 
decide  according  to  the  Scriptures.  "In  what  concerns  the 
Word  of  God  and  the  faith,"  he  added,  "every  Christian  is 
as  good  a  judge  as  the  pope,  though  supported  by  a  million 
councils,  can  be  for  him."  Both  friends  and  foes  were  at  last 
convinced  that  further  effort  for  reconciliation  would  be 
useless. 

Had  the  reformer  yielded  a  single  point,  Satan  and  his 
hosts  would  have  gained  the  victory.  But  his  unwavering 
firmness  was  the  means  of  emancipating  the  church,  and 
beginning  a  new  and  better  era.  The  influence  of  this  one 
man,  who  dared  to  think  and  act  for  himself  in  religious 
matters,  was  to  affect  the  church  and  the  world,  not  only  in 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.         167 


his  own  time,  but  in  all  future  generations.  His  firmness 
and  fidelity  would  strengthen  all,  to  the  close  of  time,  who 
should  pass  through  a  similar  experience.  The  power  and 
majesty  of  God  stood  forth  above  the  counsel  of  men,  above 
the  mighty  power  of  Satan. 

Luther  was  soon  commanded  by  the  authority  of  the  em- 
peror to  return  home,  and  he  knew  that  this  notice  would  be 
speedily  followed  by  his  condemnation.  Threatening  clouds 
overhung  his  path;  but  as  he  departed  from  Worms,  his 
heart  was  filled  with  joy  and  praise.  "Satan  himself,"  said 
he,  "  kept  the  pope's  citadel ;  but  Christ  has  made  a  wide 
breach  in  it,  and  the  devil  has  been  compelled  to  confess  that 
Christ  is  mightier  than  he." 

After  his  departure,  still  desirous  that  his  firmness  should 
not  be  mistaken  for  rebellion,  Luther  wrote  to  the  em- 
peror. "  God  is  my  witness,  who  knoweth  the  thoughts,"  he 
said,  "that  I  am  ready  with  all  my  heart  to  obey  your 
majesty  through  good  or  evil  report,  in  life  or  in  death,  with 
no  one  exception,  save  the  Word  of  God,  by  which  man 
liveth.  In  all  the  affairs  of  this  life  my  fidelity  shall  be 
unshaken ;  for,  in  these,  loss  or  gain  has  nothing  to  do  with 
salvation.  But  it  is  contrary  to  the  will  of  God,  that  man 
should  be  subject  to  man  in  that  which  pertains  to  eternal 
life.  Subjection  in  spirituals  is  a  real  worship,  and  should 
be  rendered  only  to  the  Creator." 

On  the  journey  from  Worms,  Luther's  reception  was  even 
more  flattering  than  during  his  progress  thither.  Princely 
ecclesiastics  welcomed  the  excommunicated  monk,  and  civil 
rulers  honored  the  man  whom  the  emperor  had  denounced. 
He  was  urged  to  preach,  and,  notwithstanding  the  imperial 
prohibition,  he  again  entered  the  pulpit.  "I  have  never 
pledged  myself  to  chain  up  the  Word  of  God,"  he  said,  "  nor 
will  I." 

He  had  not  been  long  absent  from  Worms,  when  the 
papists  prevailed  upon  the  emperor  to  issue  an  edict  against 
him.  In  this  decree  Luther  was  denounced  as  "Satan  him- 


168  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


self  under  the  semblance  of  a  man  in  a  monk's  hood."  It 
was  commanded  that  as  soon  as  his  safe-conduct  should  ex- 
pire, measures  be  taken  to  stop  his  work.  All  persons  were 
forbidden  to  harbor  him,  to  give  him  food  or  drink,  or  by 
word  or  act,  in  public  or  private,  to  aid  or  abet  him.  He  was 
to  be  seized  wherever  he  might  be,  and  delivered  to  the 
authorities.  His  adherents  also  were  to  be  imprisoned,  and 
their  property  confiscated.  His  writings  were  to  be  destroyed, 
and  finally,  all  who  should  dare  to  act  contrary  to  this 
decree  were  included  in  its  condemnation.  The  Elector  of 
Saxony,  and  the  princes  most  friendly  to  Luther,  had  left 
Worms  soon  after  his  departure,  and  the  emperor's  decree 
received  the  sanction  of  the  Diet.  Now  the  Romanists  were 
jubilant.  They  considered  the  fate  of  the  Reformation  sealed. 

God  had  provided  a  way  of  escape  for  his  servant  in  this 
hour  of  peril.  A  vigilant  eye  had  followed  Luther's  move- 
ments, and  a  true  and  noble  heart  had  resolved  upon  his 
rescue.  It  was  plain  that  Rome  would  be  satisfied  with 
nothing  short  of  his  death ;  only  by  concealment  could  he 
be  preserved  from  the  jaws  of  the  lion.  God  gave  wisdom 
to  Frederick  of  Saxony  to  devise  a  plan  for  the  reformer's 
preservation.  With  the  co-operation  of  true  friends,  the 
elector's  purpose  was  carried  out,  and  Luther  was  effectually 
hidden  from  friends  and  foes.  Upon  his  homeward  journey, 
he  was  seized,  separated  from  his  attendants,  and  hurriedly 
conveyed  through  the  forest  to  the  castle  of  Wartburg,  an 
isolated  mountain  fortress.  Both  his  seizure  and  his  con- 
cealment were  so  involved  in  mystery  that  even  Frederick 
himself  for  a  long  time  knew  not  whither  he  had  been  con- 
ducted. This  ignorance  was  not  without  design ;  so  long  as 
the  elector  knew  nothing  of  Luther's  whereabouts,  he  could 
reveal  nothing.  He  satisfied  himself  that  the  reformer  was 
safe,  and  with  this  knowledge  he  was  content. 

Spring,  summer,  and  autumn  passed,  and  winter  came, 
and  Luther  still  remained  a  prisoner.  Aleander  and  his 
partisans  exulted  as  the  light  of  the  gospel  seemed  about 


LUTHER  BEFORE  THE  DIET.  169 

to  be  extinguished.  But  instead  of  this,  the  reformer  was 
filling  his  lamp  from  the  store-house  of  truth;  and  its  light 
was  to  shine  forth  with  brighter  radiance. 

In  the  friendly  security  of  the  Wartburg,  Luther  for  a 
time  rejoiced  in  his  release  from  the  heat  and  turmoil  of 
battle.  But  he  could  not  long  find  satisfaction  in  quiet  and 
repose.  Accustomed  to  a  life  of  activity  and  stern  conflict, 
he  could  ill  endure  to  remain  inactive.  In  those  solitary 
days,  the  condition  of  the  church  rose  up  before  him,  and 
he  cried  in  despair,  "  Alas !  there  is  no  one,  in  this  latter  day 
of  His  anger,  to  stand  like  a  wall  before  the  Lord,  and  save 
Israel ! "  Again,  his  thoughts  returned  to  himself,  and  he 
feared  being  charged  with  cowardice  in  withdrawing  from 
the  contest.  Then  he  reproached  himself  for  his  indolence 
and  self-indulgence.  Yet  at  the  same  time  he  was  daily  ac- 
complishing more  than  it  seemed  possible  for  one  man  to  do. 
His  pen  was  never  idle.  While  his  enemies  flattered  them- 
selves that  he  was  silenced,  they  were  astonished  and  con- 
fused by  tangible  proof  that  he  was  still  active.  A  host  of 
tracts,  issuing  from  his  pen,  circulated  throughout  Germany. 
He  also  performed  a  nmst  important  service  for  his  coun- 
trymen by  translating  the  New  Testament  into  the  German 
tongue.  From  his  rocky  Patmos  he  continued  for  nearly  a 
whole  year  to  proclaim  the  gospel,  and  rebuke  the  sins  and 
errors  of  the  times. 

But  it  was  not  merely  to  preserve  Luther  from  the  wrath 
of  his  enemies,  nor  even  to  afford  him  a  season  of  quiet  for 
these  important  labors,  that  God  had  withdrawn  his  servant 
from  the  stage  of  public  life.  There  were  results  more  pre- 
cious than  these  to  be  secured.  In  the  solitude  and  ob- 
scurity of  his  mountain  retreat,  Luther  was  removed  from 
earthly  supports,  and  shut  out  from  human  praise.  He  was 
thus  saved  from  the  pride  and  self-confidence  that  are  so 
often  caused  by  success.  By  suffering  and  humiliation  he 
was  prepared  again  to  walk  safely  upon  the  dizzy  heights  to 
which  he  had  been  so  suddenly  exalted. 


170  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

As  inen  rejoice  in  the  freedom  which  the  truth  brings 
them,  they  are  inclined  to  extol  those  whom  God  has  em- 
ployed to  break  the  chains  of  error  and  superstition.  Satan 
seeks  to  divert  men's  thoughts  and  affections  from  God,  and 
to  fix  them  upon  human  agencies;  he  leads  them  to  honor  the 
mere  instrument,  and  to  ignore  the  Hand  that  directs  all  the 
events  of  providence.  Too  often,  religious  leaders  who  are 
thus  praised  and  reverenced  lose  sight  of  their  dependence 
upon  God,  and  are  led  to  trust  in  themselves.  As  a  result, 
they  seek  to  control  the  minds  and  consciences  of  the  peo- 
ple, who  are  disposed  to  look  to  them  for  guidance  instead 
of  looking  to  the  Word  of  God.  The  work  of  reform  is  often 
retarded  because  of  this  spirit  indulged  by  its  supporters. 
From  this  danger,  Gad  would  guard  the  cause  of  the  Ref- 
ormation. He  desired  that  work  to  receive,  not  the  impress 
of  man,  but  that  of  God.  The  eyes  of  men  had  been  turned  to 
Luther  as  the  expounder  of  the  truth ;  he  was  removed  that 
all  eyes  might  be  directed  to  the  eternal  Author  of  truth. 


OF  WORMS. 


CHAPTER    IX. 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER. 

IN  the  choice  of  instrumentalities  for  the  reforming  of  the 
church,  the  same  divine  plan  is  seen  as  in  that  for  the  plant- 
ing of  the  church.  The  heavenly  Teacher  passed  by  the 
great  men  of  earth,  the  titled  and  wealthy,  who  were  accus- 
tomed to  receive  praise  and  homage  as  leaders  of  the  people. 
They  were  so  proud  and  self-confident  in  their  boasted  supe- 
riority that  they  could  not  be  moulded  to  sympathize  with 
their  fellow-men,  and  to  become  co-laborers  with  the  humble 
Man  of  Nazareth.  To  the  unlearned,  toiling  fishermen  of 
Galilee  was  the  call  addressed,  "  Follow  me,  and  I  will  make 
you  fishers  of  men."1  These  disciples  were  humble  and 
teachable.  The  less  they  had  been  influenced  by  the  false 
teaching  of  their  time,  the  more  successfully  could  Christ 
instruct  and  train  them  for  his  service.  So  in  the  days  of 
the  Great  Reformation.  The  leading  reformers  were  men 
from  humble  life, — men  who  were  most  free  of  any  of  their 
time  from  pride  of  rank,  and  from  the  influence  of  bigotry 
and  priestcraft.  It  is  God's  plan  to  employ  humble  instru- 
ments to  accomplish  great  results.  Then  the  glory  will  not 
be  given  to  men,  but  to  Him  who  works  through  them  to 
will  and  to  do  of  his  own  good  pleasure. 

A  few  weeks  after  the  birth  of  Luther  in  a  miner's  cabin 
in  Saxony,  Ulric  Zwingle  was  born  in  a  herdsman's  cottage 
among  the  Alps.  Zwingle's  surroundings  in  childhood,  and 
his  early  training,  were  such  as  to  prepare  him  for  his  future 
mission.  Reared  amid  scenes  of  natural  grandeur,  beauty, 
and  awful  sublimity,  his  mind  was  early  impressed  with  a 
sense  of  the  greatness,  the  power,  and  the  majesty  of  God. 

1  Matt.  4:19.  (171) 


172  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  history  of  the  brave  deeds  achieved  upon  his  native 
mountains,  kindled  his  youthful  aspirations.  And  at  the 
side  of  his  pious  grandmother  he  listened  to  the  few  precious 
Bible  stories  which  she  had  gleaned  from  amid  the  legends 
and  traditions  of  the  church.  With  eager  interest  he  heard 
of  the  grand  deeds  of  patriarchs  and  prophets,  of  the  shep- 
herds who  watched  their  flocks  on  the  hills  of  Palestine 
where  angels  talked  with  them,  of  the  Babe  of  Bethlehem 
and  the  Man  of  Calvary. 

Like  John  Luther,  Zwingle's  father  desired  an  education 
for  his  son,  and  the  boy  was  early  sent  from  his  native  val- 
ley. His  mind  rapidly  developed,  and  it  soon  became  a 
question  where  to  find  teachers  competent  to  instruct  him. 
At  the  age  of  thirteen  he  went  to  Bern,  which  then  possessed 
the  most  distinguished  school  in  Switzerland.  Here,  how- 
ever, a  danger  arose  which  threatened  to  blight  the  promise 
of  his  life.  Determined  efforts  were  put  forth  by  the  friars 
to  allure  him  into  a  monastery. .  The  Dominican  and  Fran- 
ciscan monks  were  in  rivalry  for  popular  favor.  This  they 
endeavored  to  secure  by  the  showy  adornments  of  their 
churches,  the  pomp  of  their  ceremonials,  and  the  attractions 
of  famous  relics  and  miracle-working  images.  The  Domin- 
icans of  Bern  saw  that  if  they  could  win  this  talented  young 
scholar,  they  would  secure  both  gain  and  honor.  His  ex- 
treme youth,  his  natural  ability  as  a  speaker  and  a  writer, 
and  his  genius  for  music  and  poetry,  would  be  more  effective 
than  all  their  pomp  and  display,  in  attracting  the  people  to 
their  services  and  increasing  the  revenues  of  their  order. 
By  deceit  and  flattery  they  endeavored  to  induce  Zwingle  to 
enter  their  convent.  Luther  while  a  student  at  school  had 
buried  himself  in  a  convent  cell,  and  he  would  have  been 
lost  to  the  world  hud  not  God's  providence  released  him. 
X \\ingle  was  not  permitted  to  encounter  the  same  peril. 
Providentially  his  father  received  information  of  the  designs 
of  the  friars.  He  had  no  intention  of  allowing  his  son  to 
follow  the  idle  and  worthless  life  of  the  monks.  He  saw 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  173 

that  his  future  usefulness  was  at  stake,  and  directed  him  to 
return  home  without  delay. 

The  command  was  obeyed;  but  the* youth  could  not  be 
long  content  in  his  native  valley,  and  he  soon  resumed  his 
studies,  repairing,  after  a  time,  to  Basel.  It  was  here  that 
Zwingle  first  heard  the  gospel  of  God's  free  grace.  Wittem- 
bach,  a  teacher  of  the  ancient  languages,  had,  while  studying 
Greek  and  Hebrew,  been  led  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and 
thus  rays  of  divine  light  were  shed  into  the  minds  of  the 
students  under  his  instruction.  He  declared  that  there  was 
a  truth  more  ancient,  and  of  infinitely  greater  worth,  than 
the  theories  taught  by  schoolmen  and  philosophers.  This 
ancient  truth  was  that  the  death  of  Christ  is  the  sinner's 
only  ransom.  To  Zwingle  these  words  were  as  the  first  ray 
of  light  that  precedes  the  dawn. 

Zwingle  was  soon  called  from  Basel,  to  enter  upon  his 
life-work.  His  first  field  of  labor  was  in  an  Alpine  parish, 
not  far  distant  from  his  native  valley.  Having  received 
ordination  as  a  priest,  "  he  devoted  himself  with  his  whole 
soul  to  the  search  after  divine  truth;  for  he  was  well  aware," 
says  a  fellow-reformer,  "how  much  he  must  know  to  whom 
the  flock  of  Christ  is  intrusted."  The  more  he  searched  the 
Scriptures  the  clearer  appeared  the  contrast  between  their 
truths  and  the  heresies  of  Rome.  He  submitted  himself  to 
the  Bible  as  the  word  of  God,  the  only  sufficient,  infallible 
rule.  He  saw  that  it  must  be  its  own  interpreter.  He  dared 
not  attempt  to  explain  Scripture  to  sustain  a  preconceived 
theory  or  doctrine,  but  held  it  his  duty  to  learn  what  is  its 
direct  and  obvious  teaching.  He  sought  to  avail  himself  of 
every  help  to  obtain  a  full  and  correct  understanding  of  its 
meaning,  and  he  invoked  the  aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which 
would,  he  declared,  reveal  it  to  all  who  sought  it  in  sincerity . 
and  with  prayer. 

"The  Scriptures,"   said   Zwingle,  "come   from   God,  not 
from  man.     Even  that  God  who  enlightens  will  give  thee  to 
understand  that  the  speech  comes  from  God.     The  Word  of 
14 


174  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


God  .  .  .  cannot  fail.  It  is  bright,  it  teaches  itself,  dis- 
closes itself,  it  illumines  the  soul  with  all  salvation  and 
grace,  comforts  it  in  God,  humbles  it,  so  that  it  loses  and 
even  forfeits  itself  and  embraces  God."  The  truth  of  these 
words  Zwingle  himself  had  proved.  Speaking  of  his  ex- 
perience at  this  time,  he  afterward  wrote.  "When  I  began 
to  give  myself  wholly  up  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  philosophy 
and  theology  (scholastic)  would  always  keep  suggesting 
quarrels  to  me.  At  last  I  came  to  this,  that  I  thought, 
'Thou  must  let  all  that  lie,  and  learn  the  meaning  of  God 
purely  out  of  his  own  simple  Word.'  Then  1  began  to  ask 
God  for  his  light,  and  the  Scriptures  began  to  be  much 
easier  to  me." 

The  doctrine  preached  by  Zwingle  was  not  received  from 
Luther.  It  was  the  doctrine  of  Christ.  "  If  Luther  preaches 
Christ,"  said  the  Swiss  reformer,  "  he  does  what  I  do.  He 
has  led  to  Christ  many  more  souls  than  I; — be  it  so.  Yet 
will  I  bear  no  other  name  than  that  of  Christ,  whose  soldier 
I  am,  and  who  alone  is  my  head.  Never  has  a  single  line 
been  addressed  by  me  to  Luther,  or  by  Luther  to  me.  And 
why? — That  it  might  be  manifest  to  all  how  uniform  is  the 
testimony  of  the  Spirit  cf  God,  since  we,  who  have  had  no 
communication  with  each  other,  agree  so  closely  in  the 
doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ." 

In  1516  Zwingle  was  invited  to  become  a  preacher  in  the 
convent  at  Einsiedeln.  Here  he  was  to  have  a  closer  view 
of  the  corruptions  of  Rome,  and  was  to  exert  an  influence 
as  a  reformer  that  would  be  felt  far  beyond  his  native  Alps. 
Among  the  chief  attractions  of  Einsiedeln  was  an  image  of 
the  virgin  which  was  said  to  have  the  power  of  working 
miracles.  Above  the  gateway  of  the  convent  was  the  in- 
scription, "  Here  may  be  obtained  complete  remission  of 
sins.''  Pilgrims  at  all  seasons  resorted  to  the  shrine  of 
the  virgin,  but  at  the  great  yearly  festival  of  its  consecra- 
tion, multitudes  came  from  all  parts  of  Switzerland,  and  even 
from  France  and  Germany.  Zwingle,  greatly  afflicted  at 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  175 

the  sight,  seized  the  opportunity  to  proclaim  liberty  through 
the  gospel  to  these  bond-slaves  of  superstition. 

"  Think  not,"  he  said,  "  that  God  is  in  this  temple  more 
than  in  any  other  part  of  creation.  Wherever  he  has  fixed 
your  dwelling  he  encompasses  you,  and  hears  you.  ,  .  . 
What  power  can  there  be  in  unprofitable  works,  weary  pil- 
grimages, offerings,  prayers  to  the  virgin  and  the  saints,  to 
secure  you  the  favor  of  God?  What  signify  the  multiplying 
of  words  in  prayer?  What  efficacy  in  the  cowl  or  shaven 
crown,  or  priestly  garments  falling,  and  adorned  with  gold? 
God  looks  upon  the  heart — and  our  heart  is  far  off  from  God." 
"  Christ,"  he  said,  "  who  offered  himself  on  the  cross  once  for 
all,  is  the  sacrifice  and  victim  that  satisfies  for  all  eternity, 
for  the  sins  of  all  believers." 

To  many  listeners  these  teachings  were  unwelcome.  It  was 
a  bitter  disappointment  to  them  to  be  told  that  their  toilsome 
journey  had  been  made  in  vain.  The  pardon  freely  offered 
to  them  through  Christ  they  could  not  comprehend.  They 
were  satisfied  with  the  old  way  to  Heaven  which  Rome 
had  marked  out  for  them.  They  shrank  from  the  perplexity 
of  searching  for  anything  better.  It  was  easier  to  trust  their 
salvation  to  the  priests  and  the  pope  than  to  seek  for  purity 
of  heart. 

But  another  class  received  with  gladness  the  tidings  of 
redemption  through  Christ.  The  observances  enjoined  by 
Rome  had  failed  to  bring  peace  of  soul,  and  in  faith  they 
accepted  the  Saviour's  blood  as  their  propitiation.  These 
returned  to  their  homes  to  reveal  to  others  the  precious 
light  which  they  had  received.  The  truth  was  thus  carried 
from  hamlet  to  hamlet,  from  town  to  town,  and  the  number 
of  pilgrims  to  the  virgin's  shrine  greatly  lessened.  There 
was  a  falling  off  in  the  offerings,  and  consequently  in  the 
salary  of  Zwingle,  which  was  drawn  from  them.  But  this 
caused  him  only  joy  as  he  saw  that  the  power  of  fanaticism, 
and  superstition  was  being  broken. 

The  authorities  of  the  church  were  not  blind  to  the  work 


176  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

which  Zwingle  was  accomplishing;  but  for  the  present  they 
forbore  to  interfere.  Hoping  yet  to  secure  him  to  their  cause, 
they  endeavored  to  win  him  by  flatteries;  and  meanwhile 
the  truth  was  gaining  a  hold  upon  the  hearts  of  the  people. 

Zwingle's  labors  at  Einsiedeln  had  prepared  him  for  a 
wider  field,  and  this  he  was  soon  to  enter.  After  three  years 
here,  he  was  called  to  the  office  of  preacher  in  the  cathedral 
at  Zurich.  This  was  then  the  most  important  town  of  the 
Swiss  confederacy,  and  the  influence  exerted  here  would  be 
widely  felt.  The  ecclesiastics  by  whose  invitation  he  came 
to  Zurich  were,  however,  desirous  of  preventing  any  inno- 
vations, and  they  accordingly  proceeded  to  instruct  him  as 
to  his  duties. 

"You  will  use  your  utmost  diligence,"  they  said,  "in 
collecting  the  revenues  of  the  chapter — not  overlooking  the 
smallest  item.  You  will  exhort  the  faithful,  both  from  the 
pulpit  and  in  the  confessional,  to  pay  all  dues  and  tithes,  and 
to  testify  by  their  offerings  the  love  which  they  bear  to  the 
church.  You  will  be  careful  to  increase  the  income  that 
arises  from  the  sick,  from  masses,  and  in  general  from  all 
ecclesiastical  ordinances."  "  As  to  the  administration  of  the 
sacraments,  preaching,  and  personally  watching  over  the 
flock,"  added  his  instructors,  "  these  also  are  among  the  du- 
ties of  the  priest.  But  for  the  performance  of  these,  you  may 
employ  a  vicar  to  act  in  your  stead, — especially  in  preaching. 
You  are  to  administer  the  sacraments  only  to  persons  of 
distinction,  and  when  especially  called  upon;  you  are  not 
allowed  to  administer  them  indiscriminately  to  people  of 
all  ranks." 

Zwingle  listened  in  silence  to  this  charge,  and  in  reply, 
after  expressing  his  gratitude  for  the  honor  of  a  call  to  this 
important  station,  he  proceeded  to  explain  the  course  which 
he  proposed  to  adopt.  "The  history  of  Jesus,"  he  said,  "has 
!><•(  11  too  long  kept  out  of  the  people's  view.  It  is  my  pur- 
pose to  lecture  upon  the  whole  of  the  Gospel  according  to 
St.  Matthew,  drawing  from  the  fountains  of  Scripture  alone, 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  177 


sounding  all  its  depths,  comparing  text  with  text,  and  put- 
ting up  earnest  and  unceasing  prayers,  that  I  may  be  per- 
mitted to  discover  what  is  the  mind  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  It 
is  to  the  glory  of  God,  to  the  praise  of  his  only  Son,  to  the 
salvation  of  souls,  and  their  instruction  in  the  true  faith,  that 
I  desire  to  consecrate  my  ministry."  Though  some  of  the 
ecclesiastics  disapproved  his  plan,  and  endeavored  to  dis- 
suade him  from  it,  Zwingle  remained  steadfast.  He  declared 
that  he  was  about  to  introduce  no  new  method,  but  the  old 
method  employed  by  the  church  in  earlier  and  purer  times. 

Already  an  interest  had  been  awakened  in  the  truths  he 
taught;  and  the  people  nocked  in  great  numbers  to  listen  to 
his  preaching.  Many  who  had  long  since  ceased  to  attend 
service  were  among  his  hearers.  He  began  his  ministry  by 
opening  the  Gospels,  and  reading  and  explaining  to  his 
hearers  the  inspired  narrative  of  the  life,  teachings,  and 
death  of  Christ.  Here,  as  at  Einsiedeln,  he  presented  the 
Word  of  God  as  the  only  infallible  authority,  and  the  death 
of  Christ  as  the  only  complete  sacrifice.  "  It  is  to  Christ," 
he  said,  "that  I  wish  to  guide  you, — to  Christ,  the  true 
spring  of  salvation."  Around  the  preacher  crowded  the 
people  of  all  classes,  from  statesmen  and  scholars  to  the 
artisan  and  the  peasant.  With  deep  interest  they  listened 
to  his  words.  He  not  only  proclaimed  the  offer  of  a  free 
salvation,  but  fearlessly  rebuked  the  evils  and  corruptions 
of  the  times.  Many  returned  from  the  cathedral  praising 
God.  "This  man,"  they  said,  "is  a  preacher  of  the  truth. 
He  will  be  our  Moses,  to  lead  us  forth  from  this  Egyptian 
darkness." 

But  though  at  first  his  labors  were  received  with  great 
enthusiasm,  after  a  time  opposition  arose.  The  monks  set 
themselves  to  hinder  his  work  and  condemn  his  teachings. 
Many  assailed  him  with  gibes  and  sneers ;  others  resorted 
to  insolence  and  threats.  But  Zwingle  bore  all  with  pa- 
tience, saying,  "If  we  would  win  souls  to  Christ,  we  must 
learn  to  shut  our  eyes  against  many  things  that  meet  us  in 
our  way." 


178  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


About  this  time  a  new  agency  came  in  to  advance  the 
work  of  reform.  One  Lucian  was  sent  to  Zurich  with  some 
of  Luther's  writings  by  a  friend  of  the  reformed  faith  at 
Basel,  who  suggested  that  the  sale  of  these  books  might  be  a 
powerful  means  of  scattering  the  light.  "Ascertain,"  he 
wrote  to  Zwingle,  "  whether  this  Lucian  possesses  a  sufficient 
share  of  discretion  and  address;  if  it  shall  appear  that  he 
does,  let  him  go  from  city  to  city,  from  town  to  town,  from 
village  to  village,  nay,  from  house  to  house,  all  over  Switzer- 
land, carrying  with  him  the  writings  of  Luther,  and  espe- 
cially the  exposition  of  the  Lord's  prayer  written  for  the 
laity.  The  more  it  is  known,  the  more  purchasers  will  it 
find."  Thus  the  light  found  entrance. 

At  the  time  when  God  is  preparing  to  break  the  shackles 
of  ignorance  and  superstition,  then  it  is  that  Satan  works 
with  greatest  power  to  enshroud  men  in  darkness,  and  to 
bind  their  fetters  still  more  firmly.  As  men  were  rising  up 
in  different  lands  to  present  to  the  people  forgiveness  and 
justification  through  the  blood  of  Christ,  Rome  proceeded 
with  renewed  energy  to  open  her  market  throughout  Chris- 
tendom, offering  pardon  for  money. 

Every  sin  had  its  price,  and  men  were  granted  free  license 
for  crime,  if  the  treasury  of  the  church*  was  kept  well  filled. 
Thus  the  two  movements  advanced, — one  offering  forgive- 
ness of  sin  for  money,  the  other  forgiveness  through  Christ; 
Rome  licensing  sin,  and  making  it  her  source  of  revenue ; 
the  reformers  condemning  sin,  and  pointing  to  Christ  as  the 
propitiation  and  deliverer. 

In  Germany  the  sale  of  indulgences  had  been  committed 
to  the  Dominican  friars,  and  was  conducted  by  the  infamous 
Trtzel.  In  Switzerland  the  traffic  was  put  into  the  hands  of 
the  Franciscans,  under  the  control  of  Sampson,  an  Italian 
monk.  Sampson  had  already  done  good  service  to  the 
church,  having  secured  immense  sums  from  Germany  and 
Switzerland  to  fill  the  papal  treasury.  Now  he  traversed 
Switzerland,  attracting  great  crowds,  despoiling  the  poor 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  179 


peasants  of  their  scanty  earnings,  and  exacting  rich  gifts 
from  the  wealthy  classes.  But  the  influence  of  the  reform 
already  made  itself  felt  in  curtailing,  though  it  could  not 
stop,  the  traffic.  Zwingle  was  still  at  Einsiedeln  when  Sam- 
son, soon  after  entering  Switzerland,  arrived  with  his  wares 
at  a  neighboring  town.  Being  apprised  of  his  mission,  the 
reformer  immediately  set  out  to  oppose  him.  The  two  did 
not  meet,  but  such  was  Zwingle's  success  in  exposing  the 
friar's  pretensions  that  he  was  obliged  to  leave  for  other 
quarters. 

At  Zurich,  Zwingle  preached  zealously  against  the  pardon- 
mongers,  and  when  Samson  approached  the  place  he  was 
met  by  a  messenger  from  the  council,  with  an  intimation 
that  he  was  expected  to  pass  on.  He  finally  secured  an  en- 
trance by  stratagem,  but  was  sent  away  without  the  sale  of  a 
single  pardon,  and  he  soon  after  left  Switzerland. 

A  strong  impetus  was  given  to  the  reform,  by  the  appear- 
ance of  the  plague,  or  the  "  great  death,"  which  swept  over 
Switzerland  in  the  year  1519.  As  men  were  thus  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  destroyer,  many  were  led  to  feel  how 
vain  and  worthless  were  the  pardons  which  they  had  so 
lately  purchased;  and  they  longed  for  a  surer  foundation 
for  their  faith.  Zwingle  at  Zurich  was  smitten  down;  he 
was  brought  so  low  that  all  hope  of  his  recovery  was  relin- 
quished, and  the  report  was  widely  circulated  that  he  was 
dead.  In  that  trying  hour  his  hope  and  courage  were  un- 
shaken. He  looked  in  faith'  to  the  cross  of  Calvary,  trusting 
in  the  all-sufficient  propitiation  for  sin.  When  he  came 
back  from  the  gates  of  death,  it  was  to  preach  the  gospel 
with  greater  fervor  than  ever  before ;  and  his  words  exerted 
an  unwonted  power.  The  people  welcomed  with  joy  their 
beloved  pastor,  returned  to  them  from  the  brink  of  the 
grave.  They  themselves  had  come  from  attending  upon 
the  sick  and  the  dying,  and  they  felt,  as  never  before,  the 
value  of  the  gospel. 

Zwingle   had   arrived   at  a  clearer   understanding  of  its 


180  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

truths,  and  had  more  fully  experienced  in  himself  its  renew- 
ing power.  The  fall  of  man  and  the  plan  of  redemption 
were  the  subjects  upon  which  he  dwelt.  "In  Adam,"  he 
said,  "we  are  all  dead,  sunk  in  corruption  and  condemna- 
tion." "But  Christ  has  purchased  for  us  an  everlasting 
deliverance."  "  His  passion  is  an  eternal  sacrifice,  and  has 
a  perpetual  efficacy;  it  satisfies  the  divine  justice  forever 
upon  behalf  of  all  who  rely  upon  it  with  a  firm,  unshaken 
faith."  Yet  he  clearly  taught  that  men  are  not,  because  of 
the  grace  of  Christ,  free  to  continue  in  sin.  "  Wheresoever 
there  is  faith  in  God,  there  God  himself  abides;  and  where- 
soever God  is,  there  is  awakened  a  zeal  which  urges  and 
constrains  men  to  good  works." 

Such  was  the  interest  in  Zwingle's  preaching  that  the 
cathedral  was  filled  to  overflowing  with  the  crowds  that 
came  to  listen  to  him.  Little  by  little,  as  they  could  bear 
it,  he  opened  the  truth  to  his  hearers.  He  was  careful  not 
to  introduce,  at  first,  points  which  would  startle  them  and 
create  prejudice.  His  first  work  was  to  win  their  hearts  to 
the  teachings  of  Christ,  to  soften  them  by  his  love,  and  keep 
before  them  his  example;  and  as  they  should  receive  the 
principles  of  the  gospel,  their  superstitious  beliefs  and  prac- 
tices would  inevitably  be  overthrown. 

Step  by  step  the  Reformation  advanced  in  Zurich.  In  alarm 
its  enemies  aroused  to  active  opposition.  One  year  before, 
the  monk  of  Wittenberg  had  uttered  his  "No"  to  the  pope 
and  the  emperor  at  Worms,  and  now  everything  seemed  to 
indicate  a  similar  withstanding  of  the  papal  claims  at  Zu- 
rich. Repeated  attacks  were  made  upon  Zwingle.  In  the 
popish  cantons,  from  time  to  time,  disciples  of  the  gospel 
were  brought  to  the  stake,  but  this  was  not  enough;  the 
teacher  of  heresy  must  be  silenced.  Accordingly  the  Bishop 
of  Constance  dispatched  three  deputies  to  the  Council  of  Zu- 
rich, accusing  Zwingle  of  teaching  the  people  to  transgress  the 
laws  of  the  church,  thus  endangering  the  peace  and  good  order 
of  society.  If  the  authority  of  the  church  were  to  be  set  aside, 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  181 


he  urged,  universal  anarchy  would  result.  Zwingle  replied 
that  he  had  been  for  four  years  teaching  the  gospel  in  Zu- 
rich, "which  was  more  quiet  and  peaceful  than  any  other 
town  in  the  confederacy."  "  Is  not  then,"  he  said,  "  Chris- 
tianity the  best  safeguard  of  the  general  security?" 

The  deputies  had  admonished  the  councillors  to  continue 
in  the  church,  out  of  which,  they  declared,  there  was  no  sal- 
vation. Zwingle  responded :  "  Let  not  this  accusation  move 
you.  The  foundation  of  the  church  is  the  same  Rock,  the 
same  Christ,  that  gave  Peter  his  name  because  he  confessed 
him  faithfully.  In  every  nation  whoever  believes  with  all 
his  heart  in  the  Lord  Jesus  is  accepted  of  God.  Here,  truly, 
is  the  church,  out  of  which  no  one  can  be  saved."  As  a 
result  of  the  conference,  one  of  the  bishop's  deputies  accepted 
the  reformed  faith. 

The  council  declined  to  take  action  against  Zwingle,  and 
Rome  prepared  for  a  fresh  attack.  The  reformer,  when  ap- 
prised of  the  plots  of  his  enemies,  exclaimed,  "Let  them 
come  on;  I  fear  them  as  the  beetling  cliff  fears  the  waves 
that  thunder  at  its  feet."  The  efforts  of  the  ecclesiastics  only 
furthered  the  cause  which  they  sought  to  overthrow.  The 
truth  continued  to  spread.  In  Germany  its  adherents,  cast 
down  by  Luther's  disappearance,  took  heart  again,  as  they 
saw  the  progress  of  the  gospel  in  Switzerland. 

As  the  Reformation  became  established  in  Zurich,  its 
fruits  were  more  fully  seen  in  the  suppression  of  vice,  and 
the  promotion  of  order  and  harmony.  "  Peace  has  her  hab- 
itation in  our  town,"  wrote  Zwingle;  "no  quarrel,  no  hypoc- 
risy, no  envy,  no  strife.  Whence  can  such  union  come  but 
from  the  Lord,  and  our  doctrine,  which  fills  us  with  the 
fruits  of  peace  and  piety?" 

The  victories  gained  by  the  Reformation  stirred  the  Ro- 
manists to  still  more  determined  efforts  for  its  overthrow. 
Seeing  how  little  had  been  accomplished  by  persecution  in 
suppressing  Luther's  work  in  Germany,  they  decided  to  meet 
the  reform  with  its  own  weapons.  They  would  hold  a  dis- 


182  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


putation  with  Zwingle,  and  having  the  arrangement  of 
matters,  they  would  make  sure  of  victory  by  choosing,  them- 
selves, not  only  the  place  of  the  combat,  but  the  judges  that 
should  decide  between  the  disputants.  And  if  they  could 
once  get  Zwingle  into  their  power,  they  would  take  care  that 
he  did  not  escape  them.  The  leader  silenced,  the  move- 
ment could  speedily  be  crushed.  This  purpose,  however, 
was  carefully  concealed. 

The  disputation  was  appointed  to  be  held  at  Baden ;  but 
Zwingle  was  not  present.  The  Council  of  Zurich,  suspect- 
ing the  designs  of  the  papists,  and  warned  by  the  burning 
piles  kindled  in  the  popish  cantons  for  confessors  of  the  gos- 
pel, forbade  their  pastor  to  expose  himself  to  this  peril.  At 
Zurich  he  was  ready  to  meet  all  the  partisans  that  Rome 
might  send;  but  to  go  to  Baden,  where  the  blood  of  martyrs 
for  the  truth  had  just  been  shed,  was  to  go  to  certain  death. 
(Ecolampadius  and  Haller  were  chosen  to  represent  the 
reformers,  while  the  famous  Doctor  Eck,  supported  by  a  host 
of  learned  doctors  and  prelates,  was  the  champion  of  Rome. 

Though  Zwingle  was  not  present  at  the  conference,  his 
influence  was  felt.  The  secretaries  were  all  chosen  by  the 
papists,  and  others  were  forbidden  to  take  notes,  on  pain  of 
death.  Notwithstanding  this,  Zwingle  received  daily  a  faith- 
ful account  of  what  was  said  at  Baden.  A  student  in  attend- 
ance at  the  disputation,  made  a  record  each  evening  of  the 
arguments  that  day  presented.  These  papers  two  other  stu- 
dents undertook  to  deliver,  with  the  daily  letters  of  (Eco- 
lampadius, to  Zwingle  at  Zurich.  The  reformer  answered, 
giving  counsel  and  suggestions.  His  letters  were  written  by 
night,  and  the  students  returned  with  them  to  Baden  in  the 
morning.  To  elude  the  vigilance  of  the  guard  stationed  at 
the  city  gates,  these  messengers  brought  baskets  of  poultry 
on  their  heads,  and  they  were  permitted  to  pass  without 
hindrance. 

Thus  Zwingle  maintained  the  battle  with  his  wily  antag- 


THE  SWISS  REFORMER.  183 


onists.  "He  has  labored  more,"  said  Myconius,  "in  medi- 
tating upon  and  watching  the  contest,  and  transmitting  his 
advice  to  Baden,  than  he  could  have  done  by  disputing  in 
the  midst  of  his  enemies." 

The  Romanists,  flushed  with  anticipated  triumph,  had 
come  to  Baden  attired  in  their  richest  robes,  and  glittering 
with  jewels.  They  fared  luxuriously,  their  tables  spread 
with  the  most  costly  delicacies  and  the  choicest  wines.  The 
burden  of  their  ecclesiastical  duties  was  lightened  by  gayety 
and  reveling.  In  marked  contrast  appeared  the  reformers, 
who  were  looked  upon  by  the  people  as  little  better  than  a 
company  of  beggars,  and  whose  frugal  fare  kept  them  but 
short  time  at  table.  (Ecolampadius'  landlord,  taking  occa- 
sion to  watch  him  in  his  room,  found  him  always  engaged 
in  study  or  at  prayer,  and,  greatly  wondering,  reported  that 
"the  heretic  was  at  least  very  pious." 

At  the  conference,  "Eck  haughtily  ascended  a  pulpit 
superbly  decorated,  while  the  humble  (Ecolampadius,  meanly 
clad,  sat  facing  his  adversary,  upon  a  rudely  constructed 
platform."  Eck's  stentorian  voice  and  unbounded  assur- 
ance never  failed  him.  His  zeal  was  stimulated  by  the  hope 
of  gold  as  well  as  fame ;  for  the  defender  of  the  faith  was  to 
be  rewarded  by  a  handsome  fee.  When  better  arguments 
failed,  he  had  resort  to  insults,  and  even  to  oaths. 

CEcolampadius,  modest  and  self-distrustful,  had  shrunk 
from  the  combat,  and  he  entered  upon  it.  with  the  solemn 
avowal,  "  I  recognize  no  other  rule  of  judgment  than  the 
Word  of  God."  Though  gentle  and  courteous  in  demeanor, 
he  proved  himself  able  and  unflinching.  While  the  Roman- 
ists, according  to  their  wont,  appealed  for  authority  to  the 
customs  of  the  church,  the  reformer  adhered  steadfastly  to 
the  Holy  Scriptures.  "  In  our  Switzerland,"  he  said,  "  custom 
is  of  no  force  unless  it  be  according  to  the  constitution;  now 
in  all  matters  of  faith,  the  Bible  is  our  constitution." 

The  contrast  between  the  two  disputants  was  not  without 


184 


THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


effect.  The  calm,  clear  reasoning  of  the  reformer,  so  gently 
and  modestly  presented,  appealed  to  minds  that  turned  in 
disgust  from  Eck's  boastful  and  boisterous  assumptions. 

The  discussion  continued  eighteen  days.  At  its  close,  the 
papists  with  great  confidence  claimed  the  victory.  Most  of 
the  deputies  sided  with  Rome,  and  the  Diet  pronounced  the 
reformers  vanquished,  and  declared  that  they,  together  with 
Zwingle,  their  leader,  were  cut  off  from  the  church.  But 
the  fruits  of  the  conference  revealed  on  which  side  the 
advantage  lay.  The  contest  resulted  in  a  strong  impetus 
to  the  Protestant  cause,  and  it  was  not  long  afterward 
that  the  important  cities  of  Bern  and  Basel  declared  for 
the  Reformation. 


VIEW  IN  ZURICH. 


CHAPTER  X. 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY. 

LUTHER'S  mysterious  disappearance  excited  consternation 
throughout  all  Germany.  Inquiries  concerning  him  were 
heard  everywhere.  The  wildest  rumors  were  circulated,  and 
many  believed  that  he  had  been  murdered.  There  was 
great  lamentation,  not  only  by  his  avowed  friends,  but  by 
thousands  who  had  not  openly  taken  their  stand  with  the 
Reformation.  Many  bound  themselves  by  a  solemn  oath  to 
avenge  his  death. 

The  Romish  leaders  saw  with  terror  to  what  a  pitch  had 
risen  the  feeling  against  them.  Though  at  first  exultant  at 
the  supposed  death  of  Luther,  they  soon  desired  to  hide 
from  the  wrath  of  the  people.  His  enemies  had  not  been 
so  troubled  by  his  most  daring  acts  while*among  them  as 
they  were  at  his  removal.  Those  who  in  their  rage  had 
sought  to  destroy  the  bold  reformer,  were  filled  with  fear 
now  that  he  had  become  a  helpless  captive.  "  The  only  way 
of  extricating  ourselves,"  said  one,  "is  to  light  our  torches, 
and  go  searching  through  the  earth  for  Luther,  till  we  can 
restore  him  to  the  nation  that  will  have  him."  The  edict 
of  the  emperor  seemed  to  fall  powerless.  The  papal  legates 
were  filled  with  indignation  as  they  saw  that  it  commanded 
far  less  attention  than  did  the  fate  of  Luther. 

The  tidings  that  he  was  safe,  though  a  prisoner,  calmed 
the  fears  of  the  people,  while  it  still  further  aroused  their 
enthusiasm  in  his  favor.  His  writings  were  read  with  greater 
eagerness  than  ever  before.  Increasing  numbers  joined  the 
cause  of  the  heroic  man  who  had,  at  such  fearful  odds,  de- 
fended the  Word  of  God.  The  Reformation  was  constantly 

(185) 


186  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


gaining  in  strength.  .The  seed  which  Luther  had  sown 
sprung  up  everywhere.  His  absence  accomplished  a  work 
which  his  presence  would  have  failed  to  do.  Other  laborers 
felt  a  new  responsibility,  now  that  their  great  leader  was 
removed.  With  new  faith  and  earnestness  they  pressed  for- 
ward to  do  all  in  their  power,  that  the  work  so  nobly  begun 
might  not  be  hindered. 

But  Satan  was  not  idle.  He  now  attempted  what  he  has 
attempted  in  every  other  reformatory  movement, — to  deceive 
and  destroy  the  people  by  palming  off  upon  them  a  counter- 
feit in  place  of  the  true  work.  As  there  were  false  christs  in 
the  first  century  of  the  Christian  church,  so  there  arose  false 
prophets  in  the  sixteenth  century. 

A  few  men,  deeply  affected  by  the  excitement  in  the  re- 
ligious world,  imagined  themselves  to  have  received  special 
revelations  from  Heaven,  and  claimed  to  have  been  divinely 
commissioned  to  carry  forward  to  its  completion  the  Refor- 
mation which,  they  declared,  had  been  but  feebly  begun 
by  Luther.  In  truth,  they  were  undoing  the  very  work 
which  he  had  accomplished.  They  rejected  the  great  prin- 
ciple which  was  the  very  foundation  of  the  Reformation, — 
that  the  Word  of  God  is  the  all-sufficient  rule  of  faith  and 
practice;  and  for  that  unerring  guide  they  substituted  the 
changeable,  uncertain  standard  of  their  own  feelings  and 
impressions.  By  this  act  of  setting  aside  the  great  detector 
of  error  and  falsehood,  the  way  was  opened  for  Satan  to  con- 
trol minds  as  best  pleased  himself. 

One  of  these  prophets  claimed  to  have  been  instructed  by 
the  angel  Gabriel.  A  student  who  united  with  him  forsook 
his  studies,  declaring  that  he  had  been  endowed  by  God 
himself  with  wisdom  to  expound  his  Word.  Others  who 
were  naturally  inclined  to  fanaticism  -united  with  them. 
The  proceedings  of  these  enthusiasts  created  no  little  excite- 
ment. The  preaching  r>f  Luther  had  aroused  the  people 
everywhere  to  feel  the  necessity  of  reform,  and  now  some 
really  honest  persons  were  misled  by  the  pretensions  of  the 
new  prophets. 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY.          187 

The  leaders  of  the  movement  proceeded  to  Wittenberg,  and 
urged  their  claims  upon  Melancthon  and  his  co-laborers. 
Said  they :  "  We  are  sent  by  God  to  teach  the  people.  We 
have  received  special  revelations  from  God  himself,  and 
therefore  know  what  is  coming  to  pass.  We  are  apostles  and 
prophets,  and  appeal  to  Doctor  Luther  as  to  the  truth  of 
what  we  say." 

The  reformers  were  astonished  and  perplexed.  This  was 
such  an  element  as  they  had  never  before  encountered,  and 
they  knew  not  what  course  to  pursue.  Said  Melancthon: 
"There  are  indeed  spirits  of  no  ordinary  kind  in  these  men; 
but  what  spirits?"  "On  the  one  hand,  let  us  beware  of 
quenching  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  on  the  other,  of  being 
seduced  by  the  spirit  of  Satan." 

The  fruit  of  the  new  teaching  soon  became  apparent.  The 
people  were  led  to  neglect  the  Bible  or  to  wholly  cast  it  aside. 
The  schools  were  thrown  into  confusion.  Students,  spurn- 
ing all  restraint,  abandoned  their  studies,  and  withdrew 
from  the  university.  The  men  who  thought  themselves 
competent  to  revive  and  control  the  work  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, succeeded  only  in  bringing  it  to  the  verge  of  ruin.  The 
Romanists  now  regained  their  confidence,  and  exclaimed 
exultfngly,  "  One  more  effort,  and  all  will  be  ours." 

Luther  at  the  Wartburg,  hearing  of  what  had  occurred? 
said  with  deep  concern,  "  I  always  expected  that  Satan  would 
send  us  this  plague."  He  perceived  the  true  character  of 
those  pretended  prophets,  and  saw  the  danger  that  threat- 
ened the  cause  of  truth.  The  opposition  of  the  pope  and 
the  emperor  had  not  caused  him  so  great  perplexity  and 
distress  as  he  now  experienced.  From  the  professed  friends 
of  the  Reformation  had  risen  its  worst  enemies.  The  very 
truths  which  had  brought  him  so  great  joy  and  consolation 
were  being  employed  to  stir  up  strife  and  create  confusion  in 
the  church. 

In  the  work  of  reform,  Luther  had  been  urged  forward 
by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  had  been  carried  beyond  himself. 
15 


188  Till-:    (i  UK  AT  CONTROVERSY. 

He  had  not  purposed  to  take  such  positions  as  he  did,  or  to 
make  so  radical  changes.  He  had  been  but  the  instrument 
in  the  hand  of  infinite  power.  Yet  he  often  trembled  for 
the  result  of  his  work.  He  had  once  said,  "If  I  knew  that 
my  doctrine  had  injured  one  human  being,  however  poor 
and  unknown, — which  it  could  not,  for  it  is  the  very  gos- 
pel,— I  would  rather  face  death  ten  times  over  than  not 
retract  it." 

And  now  Wittenberg  itself,  the  very  center  of  the  Refor- 
mation, was  fast  falling  under  the  power  of  fanaticism  and 
lawlessness.  This  terrible  condition  had  not  resulted  from 
the  teachings  of  Luther ;  but  throughout  Germany  his  ene- 
mies were  charging  it  upon  him.  In  bitterness  of  soul  he 
sometimes  asked,  "  Can  such  be  the  end  of  this  great  work 
of  the  Reformation?"  Again,  as  he  wrestled  with  God  in 
prayer,  peace  flowed  into  his  heart.  "The  work  is  not 
mine,  but  thine  own,"  he  said;  "thou  wilt  not  suffer  it  to  be 
corrupted  by  superstition  or  fanaticism. ;'  But  the  thought 
of  remaining  longer  from  the  conflict  in  such  a  crisis,  became 
insupportable.  He  determined  to  return  to  Wittenberg. 

Without  delay  he  set  out  on  his  perilous  journey.  He 
was  under  the  ban  of  the  empire.  Enemies  were  at  liberty 
to  take  his  life;  friends  were  forbidden  to  aid  or  shelter  him. 
The  imperial  government  was  adopting  tho  most  stringent 
measures  against  his  adherents.  But  he  saw  that  the  work 
of  the  gospel  was  imperiled,  and  in  the  name  of  tho  Lord  he 
went  out  fearlessly  to  battle  for  the  truth. 

In  a  letter  to  the  elector,  after  stating  his  purpose  to  leave 
the  Wartburg,  Luther  said :  "  Be  it  known  to  your  highness 
that  I  am  repairing  to  Wittenberg  under  a  protection  more, 
powerful  than  that  of  an  elector.  I  have  no  thought  of  so- 
liciting the  aid  of  your  highness;  and  am  so  far  from  desiri ML: 
your  protection  that  it  is  rather  my  purpose  to  protect  your 
holiness.  If  I  knew  Hint  your  lii^lmrss  could  or  would 
take  up  my  defense,  I  would  not  conic  to  Wittenberg.  No 
secular  sword  can  advance  this  cause;  Ood  must  do  all, 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY.          189 


without  the  aid  or  co-operation  of  man.  He  who  has  most 
faith  is  the  most  availing  defense." 

In  a  second  letter,  written  on  the  way  to  Wittenberg, 
Luther  added:  "Behold  me  ready  to  bear  your  highness' 
disapprobation,  and  the  anger  of  the  wholo  world.  Are  not 
the  Wittenbergers  my  own  sheep?  Has  not  God  committed 
them  to  my  care?  and  ought  I  not,  if  need  be,  to  lay  down 
my  life  for  them?  Besides,  I  dread  lest  we  should  see, 
throughout  Germany,  a  revolt  by  which  God  shall  punish 
our  nation." 

With  great  caution  and  humility,  yet  with  decision  and 
firmness,  he  entered  upon  his  work.  "  By  the  Word,"  said 
he,  "  we  must  refute  and  expel  what  has  gained  a  place  and 
influence  by  violence.  I  would  not  resort  to  force  against 
the  superstitious  and  unbelieving."  "  Let  thero  be  no  com- 
pulsion. I  have  been  laboring  for  liberty  of  conscience. 
Liberty  is  of  the  very  essence  of  faith." 

It  was  soon  noised  through  Wittenberg  that  Luther  had 
returned,  and  that  he  was  to  preach.  The  people  flocked 
from  all  directions,  and  the  church  was  filled  to  overflowing. 
Ascending  the  pulpit  he  with  great  wisdom  and  gentleness 
instructed,  exhorted,  and  reproved.  Touching  the  course  of 
some  who  had  resorted  to  violent  measures  in  abolishing 
the  mass,  he  said : — 

,  "The  mass  is  a  bad  thing.  God  is  opposed  to  it.  It  ought 
to  be  abolished,  and  I  would  that  everywhere  the  supper 
of  the  gospel  were  established  in  its  stead.  But  let  none  be 
torn  from  it  by  force.  We  must  leave  results  to  God.  It  is 
not  we  that  must  work,  but  his  Word.  'And  why  so?'  you 
will  ask.  Because  the  hearts  of  men  are  not  in  my  hand 
as  clay  in  the  hand  of  the  potter.  We  have  a  right  to  speak, 
but  none  whatever  to  compel.  Let  us  preach ;  the  rest  belongs 
to  God.  If  I  resort  to  force,  what  shall  I  gain?  Grimace, 
fair  appearances,  cramped  uniformity,  and  hypocrisy.  But 
there  will  be  no  hearty  sincerity,  no  faith,  no  love.  Where 
these  are  wanting,  all  is  wanting,  and  I  would  not  give  a 


190  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

straw  for  such  a  victory.  God  does  more  by  the  simple 
power  of  his  Word  than  you  and  I  and  the  whole  world 
could  effect  by  all  our  efforts  put  together.  God  arrests  the 
heart,  and  that  once  taken,  all  is  won." 

"  I  am  ready  to  preach,  argue,  write ;  but  I  will  not  con- 
strain any  one,  for  faith  is  but  a  voluntary  act.  Call  to 
mind  what  I  have  already  done.  I  stood  up  against  pope, 
indulgences,  and  papists;  but  without  violence  or  tumult. 
I  brought  forward  God's  Word;  I  preached  and  wrote,  and 
then  I  stopped.  And  while  I  laid  me  down  and  slept,  .  .  . 
the  Word  I  had  preached  brought  down  the  power  of  the 
pope  to  the  ground,  so  that  never  prince  or  emperor  had 
dealt  it  such  a  blow.  For  my  part  I  did  next  to  nothing; 
the  power  of  the  Word  did  the  whole  business.  Had  I% 
appealed  to  force,  Germany  might  have  been  deluged  with 
blood.  But  what  would  have  been  the  consequence?  Ruin 
and  destruction  of  soul  and  body.  Accordingly  I  kept  quiet, 
and  let  the  Word  run  through  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
land." 

Day  after  day,  for  a  whole  week,  Luther  continued  to" 
preach  to  eager  crowds.  The  Word  of  God  broke  the  spell 
of  fanatical  excitement.  The  power  of  the  gospel  brought 
back  the  misguided  people  into  the  way  of  truth. 

Luther  had  no  desire  to  encounter  the  fanatics  whose 
course  had  been  productive  of  so  great  evil.  He  knew  them 
to  be  men  of  unsound  judgment  and  undisciplined  passions, 
'who,  while  claiming  to  be  especially  illuminated  from  Heaven, 
would  not  endure  the  slightest  contradiction,  or  even  the 
kindest  reproof  or  counsel.  Arrogating  to  themselves  su- 
preme authority, .they  required  every  one,  without  a  ques- 
tion, to  acknowledge  their  claims.  But  as  they  demanded 
an  interview  with  him,  he  consented  to  meet  them ;  and  so 
successfully  did  he  expose  their  pretensions,  that  the  impos- 
tors at  once  departed  from  Wittenberg. 

The  fanaticism  was  checked  for  a  time ;  but  several  years 
later  it  broke  out  with  greater  violence  and  more  terrible 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY.          191 

results.  Said  Luther,  concerning  the  leaders  in  this  move- 
ment :  "  To  them  the  Holy  Scriptures  were  but  a  dead  letter, 
and  they  all  began  to  cry, ' The  Spirit!  the  Spirit!7  But 
most  assuredly  I  will  not  follow  where  their  spirit  leads  them. 
May  God  in  his  mercy  preserve  me  from  a  church  in  which 
there  are  none  but  such  saints.  I  wish  to  be  in  fellowship 
with  the  humble,  the  feeble,  the  sick,  who  know  and  feel 
their  sins,  and  who  sigh  and  cry  continually  to  God  from 
the  bottom  of  their  hearts  to  obtain  his  consolation  and 
support." 

Thomas  Munzer,  the  most  active  of  the  fanatics,  was  a  man 
of  considerable  ability,  which,  rightly  directed,  would  have 
enabled  him  to  do  good;  but  he  had  not  learned  the  first 
principles  of  true  religion.  He  imagined  himself  ordained 
of  God  to  reform  the  world,  forgetting,  like  many  other 
enthusiasts,  that  the  reform  should  begin  with  himself.  He 
wras  ambitious  to  obtain  position  and  influence,  and  was  un- 
willing to  be  second,  even  to  Luther.  He  declared  that  the 
reformers,  in  substituting  the  authority  of  Scripture  for  that 
of  the  pope,  were  only  establishing  a  different  form  of  popery. 
He  himself,  he  claimed,  had  been  divinely  commissioned  to 
introduce  the  true  reform.  "  He  who  hath  the  Spirit,"  said 
Munzer,  "hath  true  faith,  although  he  should  never  once  in 
all  his  life  see  the  Holy  Scriptures." 

The  fanatical  teachers  gave  themselves  up  to  be  governed 
by  impressions,  regarding  every  thought  and  impulse  as  the 
voice  of  God;  consequently  they  went  to  great  extremes. 
Some  even  burned  their  Bibles,  exclaiming,  "The  letter 
killeth,  but  the  Spirit  giveth  life."  Munzer's  teaching  ap- 
pealed to  men's  desire  for  the  marvelous,  while  it  gratified 
their  pride  by  virtually  placing  human  ideas  and  opinions 
above  the  Word  of  God.  His  doctrines  were  received  by 
thousands.  He  soon  denounced  all  order  in  public  worship, 
and  declared  that  to  obey  princes  was  to  attempt  to  serve 
both  God  and  Belial. 

The  minds  of  the  people,  already  beginning  to  throw  off 


192  Till:   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

the  yoke  of  the  papacy,  \\viv  also  becoming  impatient  under 
the  restraints  of  civil  authority.  Munzer's  revolutionary 
teachings,  claiming  divine  sanction,  led  them  to  break  away 
from  all  control,  and  give  the  rein  to  their  prejudices  and 
passions.  The  most  terrible  scenes  of  sedition  and  strife  fol- 
lowed, and  the  fields  of  Germany  were  drenched  with  blood. 

The  agony  of  soul  which  Luther  had  so  long  before  ex- 
perienced at  Erfurt,  now  pressed  upon  him  with  redoubled 
power  as  he  saw  the  results  of  fanaticism  charged  upon  the 
Reformation.  The  papist  princes  declared — and  many  were 
ready  to  credit  the  statement — that  the  rebellion  was  the 
legitimate  fruit  of  Luther's  doctrines.  Although  this  charge 
was  without  the  slightest  foundation,  it  could  not  but  cause 
the  reformer  great  distress.  That  the  cause  of  truth  should 
be  thus  disgraced  by  being  ranked  with  the  basest  fanaticism, 
seemed  more  than  he  could  endure.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  leaders  in  the  revolt  hated  Luther  because  he  had  not 
only  opposed  their  doctrines  and  denied  their  claims  to 
divine  inspiration,  but  had  pronounced  them  rebels  against 
the  civil  authority.  In  retaliation  they  denounced  him  as  a 
base  pretender.  He  seemed  to  have  brought  upon  himself 
the  enmity  of  both  princes  and  people. 

The  Romanists  exulted,  expecting  to  witness  the  speedy 
downfall  of  the  Reformation;  and  they  blamed  Luther,  even 
for  the  errors  which  he  had  been  most  earnestly  endeavoring 
to  correct.  The  fanatical  party,  by  falsely  claiming  to  have 
been  treated  with  great  injustice,  succeeded  in  gaining  the 
sympathies  of  a  large  class  of  the  people,  and,  as  is  often  the 
case  with  those  who  take  the  wrong  side,  they  came  to  be 
regarded  as  martyrs.  Thus  the  ones  who  were  exerting 
every  energy  in  opposition  to  the  Reformation  were  pitied 
and  lauded  as  the  victims  of  cruelty  and  oppression.  This 
\\  ,is  the  work  of  Satan,  prompted  by  the  same  spirit  of  re- 
bellion which  was  first  manifested  in  Heaven. 

Satan  is  constantly  seeking  to  deceive  men,  and  lead  them 
to  call  sin  righteousness,  and  righteousness  sin.  How  sue- 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  JK  GERMANY.         193 

cessiul  lias  been  his  work!  How  often  censure  and  reproach 
are  cast  upon  God's  faithful  servants  because  they  will  stand 
fearlessly  in  defense  of  the  truth!  Men  who  are  hut  agents 
of  Satan  are  praised  and  nattered,  and  even  looked  upon  as 
martyrs,  while  those  who  should  be  respected  and  sustained 
for  their  fidelity  to  God,  are  left  to-  stand  alone,  under  sus- 
picion and  distrust. 

Counterfeit  holiness,  spurious  sanctification,  is  still  doing 
its  work  of  deception.  Under  various  forms  it  exhibits  the 
same  spirit  as  in  the  days  of  Luther,  diverting  minds  from 
the  Scriptures,  and  leading  men  to  follow  their  own  feelings 
and  impressions  rather  than  to  yield  obedience  to  the  law  of 
God.  This  is  one  of  Satan's  most  successful  devices  to  cast 
reproach  upon  purity  and  truth. 

Fearlessly  did  Luther  defend  the  gospel  from  the  attacks 
which  came  from  every  quarter.  The  Word  of  God  proved 
itself  a  weapon  mighty  in  every  conflict.  With  that  Word 
he  warred,  against  the  usurped  authority  of  the  pope,  and 
the  rationalistic  philosophy  of  the  schoolmen,  while  he  stood 
firm  as  a  rock  against  the  fanaticism  that  sought  to  ally 
itself  with  the  Reformation. 

Each  of  these  opposing  elements  was  in  its  own  way  set- 
ting aside  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  exalting  human  wisdom 
as  the  source  of  religious  truth  and  knowledge.  Rationalism 
idolizes  reason,  and  makes  this  the  criterion  for  religion. 
Romanism,  claiming  for  her  sovereign  pontiff  an  inspiration 
descended  in  unbroken  line  from  the  apostles,  and  unchange- 
able through  all  time,  gives  ample  opportunity  for  every 
species  of  extravagance  and  corruption  to  be  concealed  under 
the  sanctity  of  the  apostolic  commission.  The  inspiration 
claimed  by  Munzer  and  his  associates  proceeded  from  no 
higher  source  than  the  vagaries  of  the  imagination,  and  its 
influence  was  subversive  of  all  authority,  human  or  divine. 
True  Christianity  receives  the  Word  of  God  as  the  great  treas- 
ure-house of  inspired  truth,  and  the  test  of  all  inspiration. 

Upon  his  return  from  the  Wartburg,  Luther  completed 


194  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


his  translation  of  the  New  Testament,  and  the  gospel  was 
soon  after  given  to  the  people  of  Germany  in  their  own 
language.  This  translation  was  received  with  great  joy  by  all 
who  loved  the  truth;  but  it  was  scornfully  rejected  by  those 
who  chose  human  traditions  and  the  commandments  of  men. 

The  priests  were  alarmed  at  the  thought  that  the  common 
people  would  now -be  able  to  discuss  with  them  the  precepts 
of  God's  Word,  and  that  their  own  ignorance  would  thus  be 
exposed.  The  weapons  of  their  carnal  reasoning  were  power- 
less against  the  sword  of  the  Spirit.  Rome  summoned  all 
her  authority  to  prevent  the  circulation  of  the  Scriptures; 
but  decrees,  anathemas-,  and  tortures  were  alike  in  vain. 
The  more  she  condemned  and  prohibited  the  Bible,  the 
greater  was  the  anxiety  of  the  people  to  know  what  it  really 
taught.  All  who  could  read  were  eager  to  study  the  Word 
of  God  for  themselves.  They  carried  it  about  with  them, 
and  read  and  re-read,  and  could  not  be  satisfied  until  they 
had  committed  large  portions  to  memory.  Seeing,  the  favor 
with  which  the  New  Testament  was  received,  Luther  imme- 
diately began  the  translation  of  the  Old,  and  published  it  in 
parts  as  fast  as  completed. 

Luther's  writings  were  welcomed  alike  in  city  and  in  ham- 
let. "Whatever  Luther  and  his  friends  composed,  others 
disseminated  far  and  wide.  Monks  who  had  been  led  to  see 
the  unlawfulness  of  the  monastic  obligations,  desirous  of 
exchanging  a  life  of  indolence  for  one  of  activity,  but  too 
ignorant  to  be  able  themselves  to  proclaim  the  Word  of  God, 
traversed  .  the  provinces,  selling  the  writings  of  the  reformer 
and  his  friends.  Germany  was  erelong  overrun  with  these 
enterprising  col  porters." 

These  writings  were  studied  with  deep  interest  by  rich  and 
poor,  the  learned  and  the  ignorant.  At  night  the  teachers  of 
the  village  schools  read  them  aloud  to  little  groups  gathered 
at  the  fireside.  With  every  effort,  some  souls  would  l>e  con- 
victed of  the  truth,  and,  receiving  the  word  with  gladness, 
would  in  their  turn  tell  the  good  news  to  others. 


PROGRESS  OF  REFORM  IN  GERMANY.          195 

The  words  of  inspiration  were  verified  :  "  The  entrance  of 
thy  words  giveth  light;  it  giveth  understanding  unto  the 
simple."1  The  study  of  the  Scriptures  was  working  a 
mighty  change  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  people.  The 
papal  rule  had  placed  upon  its  subjects  an  iron  yoke  which 
held  them  in  ignorance  and  degradation.  A  superstitious 
observance  of  forms  had  been  scrupulously  maintained;  but 
in  all  their  service  the  heart  and  intellect  had  had  little  part. 
The  preaching  of  Luther,  setting  forth  the  plain  truths  of 
God's  Word,  and  then  the  Word  itself,  placed  in  the  hands  of 
the  common  people,  had  aroused  their  dormant  powers,  not 
only  purifying  and  ennobling  the  spiritual  nature,  but  im- 
parting new  strength  and  vigor  to  the  intellect. 

Persons  of  all  ranks  were  to  be  seen  with  the  Bible  in 
their  hands,  defending  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation. 
The  papists  who  had  left  the  study  of  the  Scriptures  to  the 
priests  and  monks,  now  called  upon  them  to  come  forward 
and  refute  the  new  teachings.  But,  ignorant  alike  of  the 
Scriptures  and  of  the  power  of  God,  priests  and  friars  were 
totally  defeated  by  those  whom  they  had  denounced  as 
unlearned  and  heretical.  "Unhappily,"  said  a  Catholic 
writer,  "Luther  had  persuaded  his  followers  that  their  faith 
ought  only  to  be  founded  on  the  oracles  of  Holy  Writ." 
Crowds  would  gather  to  hear  the  truth  advocated  by  men 
of  little  education,  and  even  discussed  by  them  with  learned 
and  eloquent  theologians.  The  shameful  ignorance  of  these 
great  men  was  made  apparent  as  their  arguments  were  met 
by  the  simple  teachings  of  God's  Word.  Laborers,  soldiers, 
women,  and  even  children,  were  better  acquainted  with  the 
Bible  teachings  than  were  the  priests  and  learned  doctors. 

The  contrast  between  the  disciples  of  the  gospel  and  the 
upholders  of  popish  superstition  was  no  less  manifest  in  the 
ranks  of  scholars  than  among  the  common  people.  "Op- 
posed to  the  old  defenders  of  the  hierarchy,  who  had  neg- 
lected the  acquirement  of  the  languages  and  the  cultivation 
of  literature,  were  generous-minded  youths,  most  of  them 

^s.   119:130. 


196  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

devoted  to  study  and  the  investigation  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
acquainted  with  the  literary  treasures  of  antiquity.  Gifted 
with  quickness  of  apprehension,  elevation  of  soul,  and  in- 
trepidity of  heart,  these  youths  soon  attained  such  proficiency 
that  none  could  compete  with  them."  "  So  that  on  public 
occasions,  on  which  these  youthful  defenders  of  the  Refor- 
mation encountered  the  Romish  doctors,  their  assaults  were 
carried  on  with  an  ease  and  confidence  that  embarrassed 
the  dullness  of  their  adversaries,  and  exposed  them  before 
all  to  deserved  contempt." 

As  the  Romish  clergy  saw  their  congregations  diminish- 
ing, they  invoked  the  aid  of  the  magistrates,  and  by  every 
means  in  their  power  endeavored  to  bring  back  their  hear- 
ers. But  the  people  had  found  in  the  new  teachings  that 
which  supplied  the  wraiits  of  their  souls,  and  they  turned 
away  from  those  who  had  so  long  fed  them  with  the  worth- 
less husks  of  superstitious  rites  and  human  traditions. 

When  persecution  was  kindled  against  the  teachers  of  the 
truth,  they  gave  heed  to  the  words  of  Christ,  "  When  they 
persecute  you  in  this  city,  flee  ye  into  another."  l  The  light 
penetrated  everywhere.  The  fugitives  would  find  some- 
where a  hospitable  door  opened  to  them,  and  there  abiding, 
they  would  preach  Christ,  sometimes  in  the  church,  or,  if 
denied  that  privilege,  in  private  houses  or  in  the  open  air. 
Wherever  they  could  obtain  a  hearing  was  a  consecrated 
temple.  The  truth,  proclaimed  with  such  energy  and  assur- 
ance, spread  with  irresistible  power. 

In  vain  both  ecclesiastical  and  civil  authorities  were  in- 
voked to  crush  the  heresy.  In  vain  they  resorted  to  impris- 
onment, torture,  fire,  and  sword.  Thousands  of  believers 
sealed  their  faith  with  their  blood,  and  yet  the  work  went 
on.  Persecution  served  only  to  extend  the  truth;  and  the 
fanaticism  which  Satan- endeavored  to  unite  with  it,  resulted 
in  making  more  clear  the  contrast  between  the  w^rk  of  Satan 
and  the  work  of  God. 

iMatt.  10:23. 


CHAPTER    XI. 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES. 

ONE  of  the  noblest  testimonies  ever  uttered  for  the  Refor- 
mation, was  the  Protest  offered  by  the  Christian  princes  of 
Germany  at  the  Diet  of  Spires  in  1529.  The  courage,  faith, 
and  firmness  of  those  men  of  God,  gained  for  succeeding 
ages  liberty  of  thought  and  of  conscience.  Their  Protest 
gave  to  the  reformed  church  the  name  of  Protestant;  its 
principles  are  the  very  essence  of  Protestantism. 

A  dark  and  threatening  day  had  come  for  the  Reforma- 
tion. Notwithstanding  the  edict  of  Worms,  declaring  Luther 
to  be  an  outlaw,  and  forbidding  the  teaching  or  belief  of  his 
doctrines,  religious  toleration  had  thus  far  prevailed  in  the 
empire.  God's  providence  had  held  in  check  the  forces  that 
opposed  the  truth.  'Charles  V.  was  bent  on  crushing  the 
Reformation,  but  often  as  he  raised  his  hand  to  strike,  he 
had  been  forced  to  turn  aside  the  blow.  Again  and  again 
the  immediate  destruction  of  all  who  dared  to  oppose  them- 
selves to  Rome  appeared  inevitable;  but  at  the  critical  mo- 
ment the  armies  of  the  Turk  appeared  on  the  eastern  frontier, 
or  the  king  of  France,  or  even  the  pope  himself,  jealous  of 
the  increasing  greatness  of  the  emperor,  made  war  upon 
him;  and  thus,  amid  the  strife  and  tumult  of  nations,  the 
Reformation  had  been  left  to  strengthen  and  extend. 

At  last,  however,  the  papal  sovereigns  had  stifled  their 
feuds,  that  they  might  make  common  cause  against  the 
reformers.  The  Diet  of  Spires  in  1526  had  given  each  State 
full  liberty  in  matters  of  religion  until  the  meeting  of  a 
general  council;  but  no  sooner  had  the  dangers  passed  which 
secured  this  concession,  than  the  emperor  summoned  a  sec- 

(197) 


198  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ond  Diet  to  convene  at  Spires  in  1529  for  the  purpose  of 
crushing  heresy.  The  princes  were  to  be  induced,  by  peace- 
able means  if  possible,  to  side  against  the  Reformation;  but 
if  these  failed,  Charles  was  prepared  to  resort  to  the  sword. 

The  papists  were  exultant.  They  appeared  at  Spires  in 
great  numbers,  and  openly  manifested  their  hostility  toward 
*  the  reformers  and  all  who  favored  them.  Said  Melancthon, 
"  We  are  the  execration  and  the  sweepings  of  the  earth ; 
but  Christ  will  look  down  on  his  poor  people,  and  will  pre- 
serve them."  The  evangelical  princes  in  attendance  at  the 
Diet  were  forbidden  even  to  have  the  gospel  preached  in 
their  dwellings.  But  the  people  of  Spires  thirsted  for  the 
Word  of  God,  and,  notwithstanding  the  prohibition,  thou- 
sands flocked  to  the  services  held  in  the  chapel  of  the  Elector 
of  Saxony. 

This  hastened  the  crisis.  An  imperial  message  announced 
to  the  Diet  that  as  the-  resolution  granting  liberty  of  con- 
science had  given  rise  to  great  disorders,  the  emperor  re- 
quired that  it  be  annulled.  This  arbitrary  act  excited  the 
indignation  and  alarm  of  the  evangelical  Christians.  Said 
one,  "  Christ  has  again  fallen  into  the  hands  of  Caiaphas  and 
Pilate."  The  Romanists  became  more  violent.  A  bigoted 
papist  declared,  "The  Turks  are  better  than  the  Lutherans; 
for  the  Turks  observe  fast-days,  and  the  Lutherans  violate 
them.  If  we  must  choose  between  the  Holy  Scriptures  of 
God  and  the  old  errors  of  the  church,  we  should  reject  the 
former."  Said  Melancthon,  "Every  day,  in  full  assembly, 
Faber  casts  some  new  stone  against  the  Gospellers." 

Religious  toleration  had  been  legally  established,  and  the 
evangelical  States  were  resolved  to  oppose  the  infringement 
of  their  rights.  Luther,  being  still  under  the  ban  imposed 
by  the  edict  of  Worms,  was  not  permitted  to  be  present  at 
Spires;  but  his  place  was  supplied  by  his  co-laborers  and 
the  princes  whom  God  had  raised  up  to  defend  his  cause  in 
this  emergency.  The  noble  Frederick  of  Saxony,  Luther's 
former  protestor,  had  been  removed  by  death;  but  Duke 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  199 

John,  his  brother  and  successor,  had  joyfully  welcomed  the 
Reformation,  and  while  a  friend  of  peace,  he  displayed  great 
energy  and  courage  in  all  matters  relating  to  the  interests 
of  the  faith. 

The  priests  demanded  that  the  States  which  had  accepted 
the  Reformation  submit  implicitly  to  Romish  jurisdiction. 
The  reformers,  on  the  other  hand,  claimed  the  liberty  which 
had  previously  been  granted.  They  could  not  consent  that 
Rome  should  again  bring  under  her  control  those  States 
that  had  with  so  great  joy  received  the  Word  of  God. 

As  a  compromise  it  was  finally  proposed  that  where  the 
Reformation  had  not  become  established,  the  edict  of  Worms 
should  be  rigorously  enforced ;  and  that  in  the  evangelical 
States,  where  there  would  be  danger  of  revolt,  no  new 
reform  should  be  introduced,  there  should  be  no  preaching 
upon  disputed  points,  the  celebration  of  the  mass  should  not 
be  opposed,  and  no  Roman  Catholic  should  be  permitted  to 
embrace  Lutheranism.  This  measure  passed  the  Diet,  to 
the  great  satisfaction  of  the  popish  priests  and  prelates. 

If  this  edict  were  enforced,  the  Reformation  could  neither 
be  extended  where  as  yet  it  had  not  reached,  nor  be  estab- 
lished on  a  firm  foundation  where  it  already  existed.  Lib- 
erty of  speech  would  be  prohibited.  No  conversions  would 
be  allowed.  And  to  these  restrictions  and  prohibitions  the 
friends  of  the  Reformation  were  required  at  once  to  submit. 
The  hopes  of  the  world  seemed  about  to  be  extinguished. 
The  re-establishment  of  the  papal  worship  would  inevitably 
cause  a  revival  of  the  ancient  abuses;  and  an  occasion  would 
readily  be  found  for  completing  the  destruction  of  a  work 
that  had  already  been  shaken  by  fanaticism  arid  dissension. 

As  the  evangelical  party  met  for  consultation,  one  looked 
to  another  in  blank  dismay.  From  one  to  another  passed 
the  inquiry,  "What  is  to  be  done?"  Mighty  issues  for  the 
world  were  at  stake.  "  Should  the  chiefs  of  the  Reformation 
submit,  and  accept  the  edict?  How  easily  might  the  reform- 
ers at  this  crisis,  which  was  truly  a  tremendous  one,  have 


200  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

argued  themselves  into  a  wrong  course !  How  many  plaus- 
ible pretexts  and  fair  reasons  might  they  have  found  for 
submission!  The  Lutheran  princes  were  guaranteed  the 
free  exercise  of  their  religion.  The  same  boon  was  extended 
to  all  those  of  their  subjects  who,  prior  to  the  passing  of  the 
measure,  had  embraced  the  reformed  views.  Ought  not 
this  to  content  them?  How  many  perils  would  submission 
avoid!  On  what  unknown  hazards  and  conflicts  would 
opposition  launch  them!  Who  knows  what  opportunities 
the  future  may  bring?  Let  us  embrace  peace;  let  us  seize 
the  olive-branch  Rome  holds  out,  and  close  the  wounds  of 
Germany.  With  arguments  like  these  might  the  reformers 
have  justified  their  adoption  of  a  course  which  would  have 
assuredly  issued  in  no  long  time  in  the  overthrow  of  their 
cause.  * 

"Happily  they  looked  at  the  principle  on  which  this  arrange- 
ment was  based,  and  they  acted  in  faith.  What  was  that  prin- 
ciple?— It  was  the  right  of  Rome  to  coerce  conscience  and  for- 
bid free  inquiry.  But  wrere  not  themselves  and  their  Prot- 
estant subjects  to  enjoy  religious  freedom? — Yes,  as  a  favor, 
specially  stipulated  for  in  the  arrangement,  but  not  as  a 
right.  As  to  all  outside  that  arrangement,  the  great  prin- 
ciple of  authority  was  to" rule;  conscience  was  out  of  court, 
Rome  was  infallible  judge,  and  must  be  obeyed.  The  accept- 
ance of  the  proposed  arrangement  would  have  been  a  virtual 
admission  that  religious  liberty  ought  to  be  confined,  to 
reformed  Saxony ;  and  as  to  all  the  rest  of  Christendom,  free 
inquiry  and  the  profession  of  the  reformed  faith  were  crimes, 
and  must  be  visited  with  the  dungeon  and  the  stake. 
Could  they  consent  to  localize  religious  liberty?  to  have  it 
proclaimed  that  the  Reformation  had  made  its  last  convert, 
had  subjugated  its  last  acre?  and  that  wherever  Rome  bore 
sway  at  this  hour,  there  her  dominion  was  to  be  perpetu- 
ated? Could  the  reformers  have  pleaded  that  they  were 
innocent  of  the  blood  of  those  hundreds  and  thousands  who, 
in  pursuance  of  this  arrangement,  would  have  to  yield  up 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  201 

_________^ *  - 

their  lives  in  popish  lands?  This  would  have  been  to  betray 
at  that  supreme  hour,  the  cause  of  the  gospel,  and  the  liber- 
ties of  Christendom."  Rather  would  they  sacrifice  their 
dominions,  their  titles,  and  their  own  lives. 

"Let  us  reject  this  decree,"  said  the  princes.  "In  matters 
of  conscience  the  majority  has  no  power."  The  deputies 
declared  that  Germany  was  indebted  to  the  decree  of  tolera- 
tion for  the  peace  which  she  enjoyed,  and  that  its  abolition 
would  fill  the  empire  with  troubles  and  divisions.  "The 
Diet  is  incompetent,"  said  they,  "to  do  more  than  preserve 
religious  liberty  until  a  council  meets."  To  protect  liberty 
of  conscience  is  the  duty  of  the  State,  and  this  is  the  limit  of 
its  authority  in  matters  of  religion.  Every  secular  govern- 
ment that  attempts  to  regulate  or  enforce  religious  observ- 
ances by  civil  authority  is  sacrificing  the  very  principle  for 
which  the  evangelical  Christians  so  nobly  struggled. 

The  papists  determined  to  put  down  what  they  termed 
daring  obstinacy.  They  began  by  endeavoring  to  cause 
divisions  among  the  supporters  of  the  Reformation,  and  to 
intimidate  all  who  had  not  openly  declared  in  its  favor.  The 
representatives  of  the  free  cities  were  at  last  summoned  before 
the  Diet,  and  required  to  declare  whether  they  would  accede 
to  the  terms  of  the  proposition.  They  pleaded  for  delay, 
but  in  vain.  When  brought  to  the  test,  nearly  one-half  their 
number  sided  with  the  reformers.  Those  who  thus  refused 
to  sacrifice  liberty  of  conscience  and  the  right  of  individual 
judgment  well  knew  that  their  position  marked  them  for 
future  criticism,  condemnation,  and  persecution.  Said  one 
of  the  delegates,  "  We  must  either  deny  the  Word  of  God 
or — be  burned." 

King  Ferdinand,  the  emperor's  representative  at  the  Diet, 
saw  that  the  decree  would  cause  serious  divisions  unless  the 
princes  could  be  induced  to  accept  and  sustain  it.  He  there- 
fore tried  the  art  of  persuasion,  well  knowing  that  to  employ 
force  with  such  men  would  only  render  them  the  more  deter- 
mined. He  begged  them  to  accept  the  decree,  assuring  them 


202  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

jfc 

that  such  an  act  would  be  highly  gratifying  to  the  emperor. 
But  these  faithful  men  acknowledged  an  authority  above 
that  of  earthly  rulers,  and  they  answered  calmly,  "  We  will 
obey  the  emperor  in  everything  that  may  contribute  to 
maintain  peace  and  the  honor  of  God." 

In  the  presence  of  the  Diet,  the  king  at  last  announced 
that  the  decree  was  about  to  be  published  as  an  imperial 
edict,  and  that  the  only  course  remaining  for  the  elector  and 
his  friends  was  to  submit  to  the  majority.  Having  thus 
spoken,  he  withdrew  from  the  assembly,  giving  the  reformers 
no  opportunity  for  deliberation  or  reply.  In  vain  they  sent 
messengers  entreating  him  to  return.  To  their  remonstrances 
he  answered  only,  "It  is  a  settled  affair;  submission  is  all 
that  remains." 

The  imperial  party  were  convinced  that  the  Christian 
princes  would  adhere  to  the  Holy  Scriptures  as  superior  to 
human  doctrines  and  requirements;  and  they  knew  that 
wherever  this  principle  was  accepted,  the  papacy  would 
eventually  be  overthrown.  But,  like  thousands  since  their 
time,  looking  only  "at  the  things  which  are  seen,"  they  flat- 
tered themselves  that  the  cause  of  the  emperor  and  the  pope 
was  strong,  and  that  of  the  reformers  weak.  Had  the  re- 
formers depended  upon  human  aid  alone,  they  would  have 
been  as  powerless  as  the  papists  supposed.  But  thougli 
weak  in  numbers,  and  at  variance  with  Rome,  they  had 
their  strength.  They  appealed  from  the  decision  of  the 
Diet  to  the  Scriptures  of  truth,  and  from  the  emperor  of  Ger- 
many to  the  King  of  Heaven  and  earth. 

As  Ferdinand  had  refused  to  regard  their  conscientious 
convictions,  the  princes  decided  not  to  heed  his  absence,  but 
to  bring  their  Protest  before  the  national  council  without 
delay.  A  solemn  declaration  was  therefore  drawn  up,  and 
presented  to  the  Diet: — 

"We  protest  by  these  presents,  before  God,  our  only  Crea- 
tor, Preserver,  Redeemer,  and  Saviour,  and  \\li<>  will  one  day 
be  our  Judge,  as  well  as  before  all  men  and  all  creatures, 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  203 

that  we,  for  us  and  our  people,  neither  consent  nor  adhere  in 
any  manner  whatever  to  the  proposed  decree  in  anything 
that  is  contrary  to  God,  to  his  Word,  to  our  right  conscience, 
or  to  the  salvation  of  our  souls.  .  .  .  We  cannot  assert 
that  when  Almighty  God  calls  a  man  to  his  knowledge,  he 
dare  not  embrace  that  divine  knowledge.  .  .  .  There  is 
no  true  doctrine  but  that  which  conforms  to  the  Word  of  God. 
The  Lord  forbids  the  teaching  of  any  other  faith.  The 
Holy  Scriptures,  with  one  text  explained  by  other  and 
plainer  texts,  are,  in  all  things  necessary  for  the  Christian, 
easy  to  be  understood,  and  adapted  to  enlighten.  We  are 
therefore  resolved  by  divine  grace  to  maintain  the  pure 
preaching  of  God's  only  Word,  as  it  is  contained  in  the  script- 
ures of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  without  anything 
added  thereto.  This  word  is  the  only  truth.  It  is  the  sure 
rule  of  all  doctrine  and  life,  and  can  never  fail  or  deceive 
us.  He  who  builds  on  this  foundation  shall  stand  against 
all  the  powers  of  hell,  whilst  all  the  vanities  that  are  set  up 
against  it  shall  fall  before  the  face  of  God."  "We therefore 
reject  the  yoke  that  is  imposed  upon  us."  "At  the  same 
time  we  are  in  expectation  that  his  imperial  majesty  will 
behave  toward  us  like  a  Christian  prince  who  loves  God 
above  all  things;  and  we  declare  ourselves  ready  to  pay 
unto  him,  as  well  as  unto  you,  gracious  lords,  all  the  affec- 
tion and  obedience  that  are  our  just  and  legitimate  duty." 

A  deep  impression  was  made  upon  the  Diet.  The  major- 
ity were  filled  with  amazement  and  alarm  at  the  boldness  of 
the  protesters.  The  future  appeared  to  them  stormy  and 
uncertain.  Dissension,  strife,  and  bloodshed  seemed  inevit- 
able. But  the  reformers,  assured  of  the  justice  of  their 
cause,  and  relying  upon  the  arm  of  Omnipotence,  were  full 
of  courage  and  firmness. 

The  Protest  denied  the  right  of  civil  rulers  to  legislate  in 
matters  between  the  soul  and  God,  and  declared  with  proph- 
ets and  apostles,  "  We  ought  to  obey  God  rather  than  men." 
It  rejected  also  the  arbitrary  power  of  the  church,  and  set 


204  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

forth  the  unerring  principle  that  all  human  teaching  should 
be  in  subjection  to  the  oracles  of  God.  The  protesters  had 
thrown  off  the  yoke  of  man's  supremacy,  and  had  exalted 
Christ  as  supreme  in  the  church,  and  his  Word  in  the  pulpit. 
The  power  of  conscience  was  set  above  the  State,  and  the 
authority  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  above  the  visible  church. 
The  crown  of  Christ  was  uplifted  above  the  pope's  tiara 
and  the  emperor's  diadem.  The  protesters  had  moreover 
affirmed  their  right  to  freely  utter  their  convictions  of  truth. 
They  would  not  only  believe  and  obey,  but  teach  what  the 
Word  of  God  presents,  and  they  denied  the  right  of  priest 
or  magistrate  to  interfere.  The  Protest  of  Spires  was  a  sol- 
emn witness  against  religious  intolerance,  and  an  assertion 
of  the  right  of  all  men  to  worship  God  according  to  the  dic- 
tates of  their  own  consciences. 

The  declaration  had  been  made.  It  was  written  in  the 
memory  of  thousands,  and  registered  in  the  books  of  Heaven, 
where  no  effort  of  man  could  erase  it.  All  evangelical 
Germany  adopted  the  Protest  as  the  expression  of  its  faith. 
Everywhere  men  beheld  in  this  declaration  the  promise  of  a 
new  and  better  era.  Said  one  of  the  princes  to  the  Prot- 
estants of  Spires,  "  May  the  Almighty,  who  has  given  you 
grace  to  confess  energetically,  freely,  and  fearlessly,  preserve 
you  in  that  Christian  firmness  until  the  day  of  eternity." 

Had  the  Reformation,  after  attaining  a  degree  of  success, 
consented  to  temporize  to  secure  favor  with  the  world,  it 
would  have  been  untrue  to  God  and  to  itself,  and  would  thus 
have  insured  its  own  destruction.  The  experience  of  those 
noble  reformers  contains  a  lesson  for  all  succeeding  ages.  Sa- 
t aii's  manner  of  working  against  God  and  his  Word  has 
not  changed;  he  is  still  as  much  opposed  to  the  Scriptures 
1  M-ing  made  the  guide  of  life  as  in  the  sixteenth  century.  In 
our  time  there  is  a  wide  departure  from  their  doctrines  and 
precepts,  and  there  is  need  of  a  return  to  the  great  Prot- 
estanl  principle, — the  Bible,  and  the  Bible  only,  as  the  rule 
of  faith  and  duty.  Satan  is  still  working  through  every 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  205 

means  which  he  can  control  to-  destroy  religious  liberty. 
The  antichristian  power  which  the  protesters  of  Spires 
rejected,  is  now  with  renewed  vigor  seeking  to  re-establish 
its  lost  supremacy.  The  same  unswerving  adherence  to  the 
Word  of  God  manifested  at  that  crisis  of  the  Reformation,  is 
the  only  hope  of  reform  to-day. 

There  appeared  tokens  of  danger  to  the  Protestants.  There 
were  tokens,  also,  that  the  divine  hand  was  stretched  out  to 
protect  the  faithful.  It  was  abcut  this  time  that  Melancthon 
hurried  his  friend  Grynaras  through  the  streets  of  Spires  to 
the  Rhine,  and  urged  him  to  cross  the  river  without  delay. 
Grynaaus,  in  astonishment,  desired  to  know  the  reason  for 
this  sudden  flight.  Said  Melancthon,  "An  old  man  of  grave 
and  solemn  aspect,  but  who  is  unknown  to  me,  appeared  before 
me,  and  said, '  In  a  minute  the  officers  of  justice  will  be 
sent  by  Ferdinand  to  arrest  Grynseus.'"  On  the  banks  of 
the  Rhine,  Melancthon  waited  until  the  waters  of  that  stream 
interposed  between  his  beloved  friend  and  those  who  sought 
his  life.  When  he  saw  him  on  the  other  side  at  last,  he 
said,  "  He  is  torn  from  the  cruel  jaws  of  those  who  thirst  for 
innocent  blood." 

Grynseus  had  been  on  intimate  terms  with  a  leading  papist 
doctor;  but,  having  been  shocked  at  one  of  his  sermons,  he 
went  to  him,  and  entreated  that  he  would  no  longer  war 
against  the  truth.  The  papist  concealed  his  anger,  but  im- 
mediately repaired  to  the  king,  and  obtained  from  him 
authority  to  arrest  the  protester.  When  Melancthon  re- 
turned to  his  house,  he  was  informed  that  after  his  depart- 
ure officers  in  pursuit  of  Gryn^us  had  searched  it  from  top 
to  bottom.  He  ever  believed  that  the  Lord  had  saved  his 
friend  by  sending  a  holy  angel  to  give  him  warning. 

The  Reformation  was  to  be  brought  into  greater  prom- 
inence before  the  mighty  ones  of  the  earth.  The  evangelical 
princes  had  been  denied  a  hearing  by  King  Ferdinand;  but 
they  were  to  be  granted  an  opportunity  to  present  their 
cause  in  the  presence  of  the  emperor  and  the  assembled 


206  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


dignitaries  of  Church  and  State.  To  quiet  the  dissensions 
which  disturbed  the  empire,  Charles  V.,  in  the  year  follow- 
ing the  Protest  of  Spires;  convoked  a  Diet  at  Augsburg,  over 
which  he  announced  his  intention  to  preside  in  person. 
Thither  the  Protestant  leaders  were  summoned. 

Great  dangers  threatened  the  Reformation ;  but  its  advo- 
cates still  trusted  their  cause  with  God,  and  pledged  them- 
selves to  be  firm  to  the  gospel.  The  Elector  of  Saxony  was 
urged  by  his  councillors  not  to  appear  at  the  Diet.  The 
emperor,  they  said,  required  the  attendance  of  the  princes 
in  order  to  draw  them  into  a  snare.  "  Was  it  not  risking 
everything  to  shut  oneself  up  within  the  walls  of  a  city  with 
a  powerful  enemy?"  But  others  nobly  declared,  "Let  the 
princes  only  comport  themselves  with  courage,  and  God's 
cause  is  saved."  "  Our  God  is  faithful ;  he  will  not  abandon 
us,"  said  Luther.  The  elector  set  out,  with  his  retinue,  for 
Augsburg.  All  were  acquainted  with  the  dangers  that 
menaced  him,  and  many  went  forward  with  gloomy  counte- 
nance and  troubled  heart.  But  Luther — who  accompanied 
them  as  far  as  Coburg — revived  their  sinking  faith  by  sing- 
ing the  hymn,  written  on  that  journey, — "A  strong  tower  is 
our  God."  Many  an  anxious  foreboding  was  banished, 
many  a  heavy  heart  lightened,  at  the  sound  of  the  inspiring 
strains. 

The  reformed  princes  had  determined  upon  having  a 
statement  of  their  views  in  systematic  form,  with  the  evi- 
dence from  the  Scriptures,  to  present  before  the  Diet;  and 
the  task  of  its  preparation  was  committed  to  Luther,  Melanc- 
thon,  and  their  associates.  This  Confession  was  accepted  by 
the  Protestants  as  an  exposition  of  their  faith,  and  they 
assembled  to  affix  their  names  to  the  important  document. 
1 1  was  a  solemn  and  trying  time.  The  reformers  were  solic- 
itous that  their  cause  should  not  be  confounded  with  polit- 
ic) questions;  they  felt  that  the  Reformation  should  exer- 
cise no  other  influence  than  that  which  proceeds  from 
the  Word  of  God.  As  the  Christian  princes  advanced  to 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  207 

sign  the  Confession,  Melancthon  interposed,  saying,  "It  is 
for  the  theologians  and  ministers  to  propose  these  things, 
while  the  authority  of  the  mighty  ones  of  earth  is  to  be 
reserved  for  other  matters."  "  God  forbid,"  replied  John  of 
Saxony,  "that  you  should  exclude  me.  I  am  resolved  to 
do  my  duty,  without  being  troubled  about  my  crown.  I 
desire  to  confess  the  Lord.  My  electoral  hat  and  robes  are 
not  so  precious  to  me  as  the  cross  of  Jesus  Christ."  Having 
thus  spoken  he  wrote  down  his  name.  Said  another  of  the 
princes  as  he  took  the  pen,  "  If  the  honor  of  my  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  requires  it,  I  am  ready  to  leave  my  goods  and  life 
behind  me."  "  Rather  would  I  renounce  my  subjects  and 
my  States,  rather  would  I  quit  the  country  of  my  fathers, 
staff  in  hand,"  he  continued,  "than  to  receive  any  other  doc- 
trine than  is  contained  in  this  Confession."  Such  was  the 
faith  and  daring  of  those  men  of  God. 

The  appointed  time  came  to  appear  before  the  emperor. 
Charles  V.,  seated  upon  his  throne,  surrounded  by  the 
electors  and  the  princes,  gave  audience  to  the  Protestant  re- 
formers. The  confession  of  their  faith  was  read.  In  that  au- 
gust assembly  the  truths  of  the  gospel  were  clearly  set  forth, 
and  the  errors  of  the  papal  church  were  pointed  out.  Well 
has  that  day  been  pronounced  "  the  greatest  day  of  the  Refor- 
mation, and  one  of  the  most  glorious  in  the  history  of  Chris- 
tianity and  of  the  world." 

But  a  few  years  had  passed  since  the  monk  of-  Witten- 
berg stood  alone  at  Worms  beforq  the  national  council. 
Now  in  his  stead  were  the  noblest  and  most  powerful  princes 
of  the  empire.  Luther  had  been  forbidden  to  appear  at 
Augsburg,  but  he  had  been  present  by  his  words  and 
prayers.  "  I  thrill  with  joy/'  he  wrote, "  that  I  have  lived  until 
this  hour,  in  which  Christ  has  been  publicly  exalted  by  such 
illustrious  confessors,  and  in  so  glorious  an  assembly.  Herein 
is  fulfilled  what  the  Scripture  saith, '  I  will  declare  thy  testi- 
mony in  the  presence  of  kings.'"  . 

In  the  days  of  Paul,  the  gospel  for  which  he  was  impris- 


208  T11K   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

oned  was  thus  brought  before  the  princes  and  nobles  of 
the  imperial  city.  So  on  this  occasion,  "that  which  the  em- 
peror had  forbidden  to  be  preached  from  the  pulpit,  was  pro- 
claimed in  the  palace;  what  many  had  regarded  as  unfit 
even  for  servants  to  listen  to,  was  heard  with  wonder  by  the 
masters  and  lords  of  the  empire.  Kings  and  great  men 
were  the  auditory,  crowned  princes  were  the  preachers,  and 
the  sermon  was  the  royal  truth  of  God."  "  Since  the  apos- 
tolic age,"  says  a  writer,  "there  has  never  been  a  greater 
work,  or  a  more  magnificent  confession  of  Jesus  Christ." 

"All  that  the  Lutherans  have  said  is  true,  and  we  cannot 
deny  it,"  declared  a  papist  bishop.  "  Can  you  by  sound  rea- 
sons refute  the  Confession  made  by  the  elector  and  his 
allies?"  asked  another,  of  Doctor  Eck.  "Not  with  the  writ- 
ings of  the  apostles  and  prophets,"  was  the  reply ;  "  but  with 
the  Fathers  and  councils  I  can."  "I  understand,  then," 
responded  the  questioner,  "that  the  Lutherans  are  entrenched 
in  the  Scriptures,  and  we  are  only  outside."  Some  of  the 
princes  of  Germany  were  won  to  the  reformed  faith.  The 
emperor  himself  declared  that  the  Protestant  articles  were 
but  the  truth.  The  Confession  was  translated  into  many 
languages,  and  circulated  through  all  Europe,  and  it  has 
been  accepted  by  millions  in  succeeding  generations  as  the 
expression  of  their  faith. 

God's  faithful  servants  were  not  toiling  alone.  While 
"  principalities  and  powers  and  wicked  spirits  in  high  places  " 
were  leagued  against  ^hem,  the  Lord  did  not  forsake  his 
people.  Could  their  eyes  have  been  opened,  they  would 
have  seen  as  marked  evidence  of  divine  presence  and  aid 
as  was  granted  to  a  prophet  of  old.  When  Elisha's  servant 
pointed  his  master  to  the  hostile  army  surrounding  them, 
n  1 1<  I  cutting  off  all  opportunity  for  escape,  the  prophet  prayed, 
"Lord,  I  pray  thee,  open  his  eyes,  that  he  may  see."1  And, 
lo,  the  mountain  was  filled  with  chariots  and  horses  of  fire,  the 
am iy  of  I  leaven  stationed  to  protect  the  man  of  God.  Thus 
did  angels  guard  the  workers  in  the  cause  of  the  Reformation. 

1 2  Kings  6: 17.  ' 


PROTEST  OF  THE  PRINCES.  201) 

One  of  the  principles  most  firmly  maintained  by  Luther 
was  that  there  should  be  no  resort  to  secular  power  in  sup- 
port of  the  Reformation,  and  no  appeal  to  arms  for  its  de- 
fense. •  He  rejoiced  that  the  gospel  was  confessed  by  princes 
of  the  empire ;  but  when  they  proposed  to  unite  in  a  defensive 
league,  he  declared  that  "  the  doctrine  of  the  gospel  should 
be  defended  by  God  alone.  The  less  men  meddle  in  the 
wrork,  the  more  striking  would  be  God's  intervention  in  its 
behalf.  All  the  political  precautions  suggested  were,  in  his 
view,  attributable  to  unworthy  fear  and  sinful  mistrust." 

When  powerful  foes  were  uniting  to  overthrow  the  re- 
formed faith,  and  thousands  of  swords  seemed  about  to  be 
unsheathed  against  it,  Luther  wrote:  "Satan  is  raging; 
ungodly  priests  take  counsel  together,  and  we  are  threatened 
with  war.  Exhort  the  people  to  contend  earnestly  before 
the  throne  of  the  Lord,  by  faith  and  prayer,  that  our  adver- 
saries, being  overcome  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  may  be  con- 
strained to  peace.  The  most  urgent  of  our  wants — the  very 
first  thing  we  have  to  do,  is  to  pray;  let  the  people,  know 
that  they  are  at  this  hour  exposed  to  the  edge  of  the  sword 
and  the  rage  of  the  devil;  let  them  pray" 

Again,  at  a  later  date,  referring  to  the  league  contemplated 
by  the  reformed  princes,  he  declared  that  the  only  weapon 
employed  in  this  warfare  should  be  "the  sword  of  the 
Spirit."  He  wrote  to  the  Elector  of  Saxony:  "We  cannot 
in  our  conscience  approve  of  the  proposed  alliance.  Our 
Lord  Christ  is  mighty  enough  and  can  well  find  ways  and 
means  to  rescue  us  from  danger,  and  bring  the  thoughts  of 
the  ungodly  princes  to  nothing.  .  .  .  Christ  is  only  try- 
ing us  wrhether  we  are  willing  to  obey  his  word  or  no,  and 
whether  we  hold  it  for  certain  truth  or  not.  We  would 
rather  die  ten  times  over  than  that  the  gospel  should  be  a 
cause  of  blood  or  hurt  by  any  act  of  ours.  Let  us  rather 
patiently  suffer,  and,  as  the  psalmist  says,  be  accounted  as 
sheep  for  the  slaughter;  and  instead  of  avenging  or  defend- 
ing ourselves,  leave  room  for  God's  wrath."  "  The  cross  of 


210  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Christ  must  be  borne.  Let  your  highness  be  without  fear. 
We  shall  do  more  by  our  prayers  than  all  our  enemies  Hy 
their  boastings.  Only  let  not  your  hands  be  stained  with 
the  blood  of  your  brethren.  If  the  emperor  requires  us  to 
be  given  up  to  his  tribunals,  we  are  ready  to  appear.  You 
cannot  defend  the  faith;  each  one  should  believe  at  his  own 
risk  and  peril." 

From  the  secret  place  of  prayer  came  the  power  that  shook 
the  world  in  the  Great  Reformation.  There,  with  holy  calm- 
ness, the  servants  of  the  Lord  set  their  feet  upon  the  rock  of 
his  promises.  During  the  struggle  at  Augsburg,  Luther  did 
not  fail  to  devote  three  hours  each  day  to  prayer;  and  these 
were  taken  .from  that  portion  of  tbe  day  most  favorable  to 
study.  In  the  privacy  of  his  chamber  he  was  heard  to 
pour  out  his  soul  before  God  in  words  full  of  adoration, 
fear,  and  hope,  as  if  speaking  to  a  friend.  "I  know  that 
thou  art  our  Father  and  our  God,"  he  said,  "  and  that  thou 
wilt  scatter  the  persecutors  of  thy  children;  for  thou  art  thy- 
self endangered  with  us.  All  this  matter  is  thine,  and  it  is 
only  by  thy  constraint  that  we  have  put  our  hands  to  it. 
Defend  us,  then,  0  Father!"  To  Melancthon,  who  was 
crushed  under  the  burden  of  anxiety  and  fear,  he  wrote: 
"Grace,  and  peace  in  Christ i  In  Christ,  I  say,  and  not  in  the 
world,  Amen!  I  hate  with  exceeding  hatred  those  extreme 
cares  which  consume  you.  If  the  cause  is  unjust,  abandon 
it;  if  the  cause  is  just,  why  should  we  belie  the  promises  of 
Him  who  commands  us  to  sleep  without  fear?"  "Christ 
will  not  be  wanting  to  the  work  of  justice  and  truth.  He 
lives,  he  reigns;  what  fear,  then,  can  we  have?" 

God  did  listen  to  the  cries  of  his  servants.  He  gave  to 
princes  and  ministers  grace  and  courage  to  maintain  the 
truth  against  the  rulers  of  the  darkness  of  this  world. 
Saith  the  Lord,  "  Behold,  I  lay  in  Zion  a  chief  corner-stone, 
elect,  precious,  and  he  that  believeth  on  him  shall  not  be 
confounded." l  The  Protestant  reformers  had  built  on  Christ, 
and  the  gates  of  hell  could  not  prevail  against  them. 

*1  Peter  2:  6. 


CHAPTER    XII. 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMATION. 

THE  Protest  of  Spires  and  the  Confession  at  Augsburg, 
which  marked  the  triumph  of  the  Reformation  in  Germany, 
were  followed  by  years  of  conflict  and  darkness.  Weakened 
by  divisions  among  its  supporters,  and  assailed  by  powerful 
foes,  Protestantism  seemed  destined  to  be  utterly  destroyed. 
Thousands  sealed  their  testimony  with  their  blood.  Civil 
war  broke  out ;  the  Protestant  cause  was  betrayed  by  one  of 
its  leading  adherents;  the  noblest  of  the  reformed  princes 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  emperor,  and  were  dragged  as 
captives  from  town  to  town.  But  in  the  moment  of  his 
apparent  triumph,  the  emperor  was  smitten  with  defeat. 
He  saw  the  prey  wrested  from  his  grasp,  and  he  was  forced 
at  last  to  grant  toleration  to  the  doctrines  which  it  had  been 
the  ambition  of  his  life  to  destroy.  He  had  staked  his  king- 
dom, his  treasures,  and  life  itself,  upon  the  crushing  out  of 
the  heresy.  Now  he  saw  his  armies  wasted  by  battle,  his 
treasuries  drained,  his  many  kingdoms  threatened  by  revolt, 
while  everywhere  the  faith  which  he  had  vainly  endeavored 
to  suppress,  was  extending,  Charles  V.  had  been  battling 
against  omnipotent  power.  God  had  said,  "Let  there  be 
light,"  but  the  emperor  had  sought  to  keep  the  darkness 
unbroken.  His  purposes  had  failed,  and  in  premature  old 
age,  worn  out  with  the  long  struggle,  he  abdicated  the 
throne,  and  buried  himself  in  a  cloister. 

In  Switzerland,  as  in  Germany,  there  came  dark  days  for 
the  Reformation.  While  many  cantons  accepted  the  re- 
formed faith,  others  clung  with  blind  persistence  to  the 
creed  of  Rome.  Their  persecution  of  those  who  desired  to 
receive  the  truth,  finally  gave  rise  to  civil  war.  Zwingle 

(211) 


2.12  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

and  many  who  had  united  with  him  in  reform,  fell  on  the 
bloody  field  of  Cappel.  (Ecolampadius,  overcome  by  these 
terrible  disasters,  soon  after  died.  Rome  was  triumphant, 
and  in  many  places  seemed  about  to  recover  all  that  she  had 
lost.  But  He  whose  counsels  are  from  everlasting  had  not 
forsaken  his  cause  or  his  people.  His  hand  would  bring 
deliverance  for  them.  In  other  lands  he  had  raised  up 
laborers  to  carry  forward  the  reform. 

In  France,  before  the  name  of  Luther  had  been  heard  as 
a  reformer,  the  day  had  already  begun  to  break.  One  of 
the  first  to  catch  the  light  was  the  aged  Lefevre,  a  man  of 
extensive  learning,  a  professor  in  the  University  of  Paris, 
and  a  sincere  and  zealous  papist.  In  his  researches  into 
ancient  literature  his  attention  was  directed  to  the  Bible, 
and  he  introduced  its  study  among  his  students.  Lefevre 
was  an  enthusiastic  adorer  of  the  saints,  and  he  had  under- 
taken to  prepare  a  history  of  the  saints  and  martyrs  as 
given  in  the  legends  of  the  church.  This  was  a  work 
which  involved  great  labor,  but  he  had  already  made  con- 
siderable progress  in  it,  when,  thinking  that  he  might  obtain 
useful  assistance  from  the  Bible,  lie  began  its  study  with 
this  object.  Here  indeed  "he  found  saints  brought  to  view, 
but  not  such  as  figured  in  the  Romish  calendar.  A  flood  of 
divine  light  broke  in  upon  his  mind.  In  amazement  and 
disgust  he  turned  away  from  his  self-appointed  task,  and 
devoted  himself  to  the  Word  of  God.  The  precious  truths 
which  he  there  discovered  he  soon  began  to  teach.  In  1512, 
before  either  Luther  or  Zwingle  had  begun  the  work  oi 
reform,  Lefevre  wrote:  "It  is  God  who  gives  us,  by  faith, 
that  righteousness  which  by  grace  justifies  unto  eternal  life." 
Dwelling  upon  the  mysteries  of  redemption,  he  exclaimed, 
"Oh,  the  unspeakable  greatness  of  that  exchange, — the  Sin- 
less  One  is  condemned,  and  lie  who  is  guilty  goes  free;  the 
Blessing  bears  the  curse  and  the  curse  is  brought  into  bless- 
ing; the  Life  dies,  and  the  dead  live;  the  Glory  is  whelmed 
in  darkness,  and  he  who  knew  nothing  but  confusion  of  face 
is  clothed  with  glory." 


THE  FRENCH  RE  FOR  MA  TION.  213 

And  while  teaching  that  the  glory  of  salvation  belongs 
solely  to  God,  he  also  declared  that  the  duty  of  obedience 
belongs  to  man.  "  If  thou  art  a  member  of  Christ's  church," 
he  said,  "  thou  art  a  member  of  his  body ;  if  thou  art  of  his 
body,  then  thou  art  full  of  the  divine  nature."  "  Oh,  if  men 
could  but  enter  into  the  understanding  of  this  privilege, 
how  purely,  chastely,  and  holily,  would  they  live,  and  how 
contemptible,  when  compared  with  the  glory  within  them,— 
that  glory  which  the  eye  of  flesh  cannot  see, — would  they 
deem  all  the  glory  of  this  world." 

There  were  some  among  Lefevre's  students  who  listened 
eagerly  to  his  words,  and  who,  long  after  the  *  teacher's  voice 
should  be  silenced,  were  to  continue  to  declare  the  truth. 
Such  was  William  Farel.  The  son  of  pious  parents,  and 
educated  to  accept  with  implicit  faith  the  teachings  of  the 
church,  he  might,  with  the  apostle  Paul,  have  declared  con- 
cerning himself,  "After  the  most  straitest  sect  of  our  religion 
I  lived  a  Pharisee." 1  A  devoted  Romanist,  he  burned  with 
zeal  to  destroy  all  who  should  dare  to  oppose  the  church. 
"  I  would  gnash  my  teeth  like  a  furious  wolf,"  he  afterward 
said,  referring  to  this  period  of  his  life,  "when  I  heard  any 
one  speaking  against  the  pope."  He  had  been  untiring  in 
his  adoration  of  the  saints,  in  company  with  Lefevre  making 
the  round  of  the  churches  of  Paris,  worshiping  at  the  altars, 
and  adorning  with  gifts  the  holy  shrines.  But  these  observ- 
ances could  not  bring  peace  of  soul.  Conviction  of  sin 
fastened  upon  him,  which  all  the  acts  of  penance  that  he 
practiced,  failed  to  banish.  As  a  voice  from  Heaven,  he 
listened  to  the  reformer's  words:  "Salvation  is  of  grace. 
The  Innocent  One  is  condemned,  and  the  criminal  is  acquit- 
ted." "  It  is  the  cross  of  Christ  alone  that  openeth  the  gates 
of  Heaven,  and  shutteth  the  gates  of  hell." 

Farel  joyfully  accepted  the  truth.  By  a  conversion  like 
that  of  Paul,  he  turned  from  the  bondage  of  tradition  to  the 
liberty  of  the  sons  of  God.  "  Instead  of  the  murderous  heart 
of  a  ravening  wolf,"  he  came  back,  he  says,  "  quietly,  like  a 

Acts  26  : 5. 


214  THE  GREA  T  CONTRO  VERSY  . 

meek  and  harmless  lamb,  having  his  heart  entirely  with- 
drawn from  the  pope,  and  given  to  Jesus  Christ." 

While  Lefevre  continued  to  spread  the  light  among  his 
students,  Farel,  as  zealous  in  the  cause  of  Christ  as  he  had 
been  in  that  of  the  pope,  went  forth  to  declare  the  truth  in 
public.  A  dignitary  of  the  church,  the  bishop  of  Meaux, 
soon  after  united  with  them.  Other  teachers  who  ranked 
high  for  their  ability  and  learning,  joined  in  proclaiming 
the  gospel,  and  it  won  adherents  among  all  classes,  from  the 
homes  of  artisans  and  peasants  to  the  palace  of  the  king. 
The  sister  of  Francis  I.,  then  the  reigning  monarch,  ac- 
cepted the  reformed  faith.  The  king  himself,  and  the  queen 
mother,  appeared  for  a  time  to  regard  it  with  favor,  and  with 
high  hopes  the  reformers  looked  forward  to  the  time  when 
France  should  be  won  to  the  gospel. 

But  their  hopes  were  not  to  be  realized.  Trial  and  per- 
secution awaited  the  disciples  of  Christ.  This,  however, 
was  mercifully  veiled  from  their  eyes.  A  time  of  peace 
intervened,  that  they  might  gain  strength  to  meet  the  tem- 
pest; and  the  Reformation  made  rapid  progress.  The  bishop 
of  Meaux  labored  zealously  in  his  own  diocese  to  instruct 
both  the  clergy  and  the  people.  Ignorant  and  immoral 
priests  were  removed,  and,  so  far  as  possible,  replaced  by  men 
of  learning  and  piety.  The  bishop  greatly  desired  that  his 
people  might  have  access  to  the  Word  of  God  for  themselves, 
and  this  was  soon  accomplished.  Lefevre  undertook  the 
translation  of  the  New  Testament,  and  at  the  very  time 
when  Luther's  German  Bible  was  issuing  from  the  press  in 
Wittenberg,  the  French  New  Testament  was  published  at 
Meaux.  The  bishop  spared  no  labor  or  expense  to  circulate 
it  among  his  parishes,  and  soon  the  peasants  of  Meaux  were 
in  possession  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

As  travelers  perishing  from  thirst  welcome  with  joy  a 
living  water-spring,  so  did  these  souls  receive  the  message  of 
Heaven.  The  laborers  in  the  field,  the  artisans  in  the  work- 
shop, cheered  their  daily  toil  by  talking  of  the  precious 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMATION.  215 

truths  of  the  Bible.  At  evening,  instead  of  resorting  to  the 
wine  shops,  they  assembled  in  each  other's  homes  to  read 
God's  Word  and  join  in  prayer  and  praise.  A  great  change 
was  soon  manifest  in  these  communities.  Though  belong- 
ing to  the  humblest  class,  an  unlearned  and  hard-working 
peasantry,  the  reforming,  uplifting  power  of  divine  grace  was 
seen  in  their  lives.  Humble,  loving,  and  holy,  they  stood  as 
witnesses  to  what  the  gospel  will  accomplish  for  those  who 
receive  it  in  sincerity. 

•  The  light  kindled  at  Meaux  shed  its  beams  afar.  Every 
day  the  number  of  converts  was  increasing.  The  rage  of 
the  hierarchy  was  for  a  time  held  in.  check  by  the  king,  who 
despised  the  narrow  bigotry  of  the  monks;  but  the  papist 
leaders  finally  prevailed.  Now  the  stake  was  set  up.  The 
bishop  of  Meaux,  forced  to  choose  between  the  fire  and  recan- 
tation, accepted  the  easier  path;  but  notwithstanding  the 
leader's  fall,  his  flock  remained  steadfast.  Many  witnessed 
for  the  truth  amid  the  flames.  By  their  courage  and  fidelity 
at  the  stake,  these  humble  Christians  spoke  to  thousands 
who  in  days  of  peace  had  never  heard  their  testimony. 

It  was  not  alone  the  humble  and  the  poor,  that  amid 
suffering  and  scorn  dared  to  bear  witness  for  Christ.  In  the 
lordly  halls  of  the  castle  and  the  palace,  there  were  kingly 
souls  by  whom  truth  was  valued  above  wealth  or  rank  or 
even  life.  Knightly  armor  concealed  a  loftier  and  more 
steadfast  spirit  than  did  the  bishop's  robe  and  mitre.  Louis 
de  Berquin  was  of  noble  birth.  A  brave  and  courtly  knight, 
he  was  devoted  to  study,  polished  in  manners,  and  of  blame- 
less morals.  "  He  was,"  says  a  writer,  "  a  great  follower  of 
the  papistical  constitutions,  and  a  great  hearer  of  masses 
and  sermons."  "And  he  crowned  all  his  other  virtues  by 
holding  Lutheranism  in  special  abhorrence."  But,  like  so 
many  others,  providentially  guided  to  the  Bible,  he  was 
amazed  to  find  there,  not  the  teachings  of  popery,  but  the 
doctrines  of  Luther.  Henceforth  he  gave  himself,  with 
entire  devotion,  to  the  cause  of  the  gospel. 


216  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


"The  most  learned  of  the  nobles  of  France,"  his  genius 
and  eloquence,  his  indomitable  courage  and  heroic  zeal,  and 
his  influence  at  court — for  he  was  a  favorite  with  the  king — 
caused  him  to  be* regarded  by  many  as  one  destined  to  be  the 
reformer  of  his  country.  Said  Beza,  "  Berquin  would  have 
been  a  second  Luther,  had  he  found  in  Francis  I.  a  second 
elector."  "He  is  worse  than  Luther,"  cried  the  papists. 
More  dreaded  he  was  indeed  by  the  Romanists  of  France. 
They  thrust  him  in  prison  as  a  heretic,  but  he  was  set  at 
liberty  by  the  king.  For  years  the  struggle  continued* 
Francis,  wavering  between  Rome  and  the  Reformation, 
alternately  tolerated  and  restrained  the  fierce  zeal  of  the 
monks.  Berquin  was  three  times  imprisoned  by  the  papist 
authorities,  only  to  be  released  by  the  monarch,  who,  in 
admiration  of  his  genius  and  his  nobility  of  character, 
refused  to  sacrifice  him  to  the  malice  of  the  hierarchy. 

Berqtfin  was  repeatedly  warned  of  the  danger  that  threat- 
ened him  in  France,  and  urged  to  follow  the  steps  of  those 
who  had  found  safety  in  voluntary  exile.  The  timid  and 
time-serving  Erasmus — who  with  all  the  splendor  of  his 
scholarship  failed  of  that  moral  greatness  which  holds  life 
and  honor  subservient  to  truth — wrote  to  Berquin:  "Ask  to 
be  sent  as  ambassador  to  some  foreign  country;  go  and 
travel  in  Germany.  You  "know  Beda  and  such  as  he — he  is 
a  thousand-headed  monster,  darting  venom  on  every  side. 
Your  enemies  are  named  legion.  Were  your  cause  better 
than  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  they  will  not  let  you  go  till  they 
have  miserably  destroyed  you.  Do  not  trust  too  much  to 
the  king's  protection.  At  all  events,  do  not  compromise  me 
with  the  faculty  of  theology." 

But  as  dangers  thickened,  Berquin's  zeal  only  waxed  the 
stronger.  So  far  from  adopting  the  politic  and  self-serving 
counsel  of  Erasmus,  he  determined  upon  still  bolder  meas- 
ures. He  would  not  only  stand  in  defense  of  the  truth,  but 
he  would  attack  error.  The  charge  of  lieivsy  which  the 
Romanists  were  seeking  to  fasten  upon  him,  he  would  rivet 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMATION.  217 


upon  them.  The  most  active  and  bitter  of  his  opponents 
were  the  learned  doctors  and  monks  of  the  theological 
department  in  the  great  university  of  Paris,  one  of  the  high- 
est ecclesiastical  authorities  both  in  the  city  and  the  nation. 
From  the  writings  of  these  doctors,  Berquin  drew  twelve 
propositions  which  he  publicly  declared  to  be  contrary  to 
the  Bible,  and  therefore  heretical ;  and  he  appealed  to  the 
king  to  act  as  judge  in  the  controversy. 

The  monarch,  not  loth  to  bring  in  contrast  the  power  and 
acuteness  of  the  opposing  champions,  and  glad  of  an  oppor- 
tunity of  humbling  the  pride  of  these  haughty  monks,  bade 
the  Romanists  defend  their  cause  by  the  Bible.  This  weapon, 
they  well  knew,  would  avail  them  little;  imprisonment,  tort- 
ure, and  the  stake  were  arms  which  they  better  understood 
to  wield.  Now  the  tables  were  turned,  and  they  saw  them- 
selves about  to  fall  into  the  pit  into  which  they  had  hoped 
to  plunge  Berquin.  In  amazement  they  looked  about  them 
for  some  way  of  escape. 

Just  at  this  time  an  image  of  the  virgin,  standing  at  the 
corner  of  one  of  the  public  streets,  was  found  mutilated. 
There  was  great  excitement  in  the  city.  Crowds  of  people 
flocked  to  the  place,  with  expressions  of  mourning  and 
indignation.  The  king  also  was  deeply  moved.  Here  was 
an  advantage  which  the  monks  could  turn  to  good  account, 
and  they  were  quick  to  improve  it.  "  These  are  the  fruits 
of  the  doctrines  of  Berquin,"  they  cried.  "All  is  about  to  be 
overthrown, — religion,  the  laws,  the  throne  itself, — by  this 
Lutheran  conspiracy." 

Again  Berquin  was  apprehended.  The  king  withdrew 
from  Paris,  and  the  monks  were  thus  left  free  to  work  their 
will.  The  reformer  was  tried,  and  condemned  to  die,  and  lest 
Francis  should  even  yet  interpose  to  save  him,  the  sentence 
was  executed  on  the  very- day  it  was  pronounced.  At  noon 
Berquin  was  conducted  to  the  place  of  death.  An  immense 
throng  gathered  to  witness  the  event,  and  there  were  many 

who  saw  with  astonishment  and  misgiving  that  the  victim 
17 


21 R  THE  ORE  A  T  CONTROVERSY. 

had  been  chosen  from  the  best  and  bravest  of  the  noble 
families  of  France.  Amazement,  indignation,  scorn,  and 
bitter  hatred  darkened  the  faces  of  that  surging  crowd;  but 
upon  one  face  no  shadow  rested.  The  martyr's  thoughts 
were  far  from  that  scene  of  tumult;  he  was  conscious  only 
of  the  presence  of  his  Lord. 

The  wretched  tumbril  upon  which  he  rode,  the  frowning 
faces  of  his  persecutors,  the  dreadful  death  to  which  lie  was 
going, — these  he  heeded  not;  He  who  liveth  and  was  dead, 
and  is  alive  forevermore,  and  hath  the  keys  of  death  and 
of  hell,  was  beside  him.  Berquin's  countenance  was  ra- 
diant with  the  light  and  peace  of  Heaven.  He  had  attired 
himself  in  goodly  raiment,  wearing  /'a  cloak  of  velvet,  a 
doublet  of  satin  and  damask,  and  golden  hose."  He  was 
about  to  testify  to  his  faith  in  presence  of  the  King  of  kings 
and  the  witnessing  universe,  and  no  token  of  mourning 
should  belie  his  joy. 

As  the  procession  moved  slowly  through  the  crowded 
streets,  the  people  marked  with  wonder  the  unclouded  peace, 
the  joyous  triumph,  of  his  look  and  bearing.  "He  is,"  they 
said,  "like  one  who  sits  in  a  temple,  and  meditates  on  holy 
things." 

At  the  stake,  Berquin  endeavored  to  address  a  few  words 
to  the  people,  but  the  monks,  fearing  the  result,  began  to 
shout,  and  the  soldiers  to  clash  their  arms,  and  their  clamor 
drowned  the  martyr's  voice.  Thus  in  1529,  the  highest 
literary  and  ecclesiastical  authority  of  cultured  Paris  "set 
the  populace  of  1793  the  base  example  of  stifling  on  the 
scaffold  the  sacred  words  of  the  dying." 

Berquin  was  strangled,  and  his  body  was  consumed  in 
the  flames.  The  tidings  of  his  death  caused  sorrow  to  the 
friends  of  the  Reformation  throughout  France.  But  his  ex- 
ample was  not  lost.  "We  too  are  ready,"  said  the  witnesses 
for  the  truth,  "to  meet  death  cheerfully,  setting  our  eyes  on 
the  life  that  is  to  come." 

During   the   persecution   at   Meaux,  the  teachers  of  the 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMA  TION.  219 

reformed  faith  were  deprived  of  their  license  to  preach,  and 
they  departed  to  other  fields.  Lefevre  after  a  time  made  his 
way  to  Germany.  Farel  returned  to  his  native  town  in  East- 
ern France,  to  spread  the  light  in  the  home  of  his  childhood. 
Already  tidings  had  been  received  of  what  was  going  on  at 
Meaux,  and  the  truth,  which  he  taught  with  fearless  zeal, 
found  listeners.  Soon  the  authorities  were  roused  to  silence 
him,  and  he  was  banished  from  the  city.  Though  he  could 
no  longer  labor  publicly,  he  traversed  the  plains  and  vil- 
lages, teaching  in  private  dwellings  and  in  secluded  mead- 
ows, and  finding  shelter  in  the  forests  and  among  the  rocky 
caverns  which  had  been  his  haunts  in  boyhood.  God  was 
preparing  him  for  greater  trials.  "Crosses,  persecution,  and 
the  lying-in-wait  of  Satan,  of  which  I  had  intimation,  were 
not  wanting,"  he  said;  "they  were  eve,n  much  more  than  I 
could  have  borne  in  my  own  strength;  but  God  is  my  Fa- 
ther; he  has  ministered,  and  will  forever  minister,  to  me  all 
needful  strength." 

As  in  apostolic  days,  persecution  had  "fallen  out  rather 
unto  the  furtherance  of  the  gospel."1  Driven  from  Paris 
and  Meaux,  "they  that  were  scattered  abroad  went  every- 
where preaching  the  word."  2  And  thus  the  light  found  its 
way  into  many  of  the  remote  provinces  of  France. 

God  was  still  preparing  workers  to  extend  his  cause.  In. 
one  of  the  schools  of  Paris  was  a  thoughtful,  quiet  youth, 
already  giving  evidence  of  a  powerful  and  penetrating  mind, 
and  no  less  marked  for  the  blamelessness  of  his  life  than  for 
intellectual  ardor  and  religious  devotion.  His  genius  and 
application  soon  made  him  the  pride  of  the  college,  and  it . 
was  confidently  anticipated  that  John  Calvin  would  become 
one  of  the  ablest  and  most  honored  defenders  of  the  church. 
But  a  ray  of  divine  light  penetrated  even  within  the  walls 
of  scholasticism  and  superstition  by  which  Calvin  was 
inclosed.  He  heard  of  the  new  doctrines  with  a  shudder, 
nothing  doubting  that  the  heretics  deserved  the  fire  to  which 
lPhil.  1:12.  2  Acts  8:  4. 


220  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


they  were  given.  Yet  all  unwittingly  he  was  brought  face 
to  face  with  the  heresy,  and  forced  to  test  the  power  of  Rom- 
ish theology  to  combat  the  Protestant  teaching. 

A  cousin  of  Calvin's,  who  had  joined  the  reformers,  was  in 
Paris.  The  two  kinsmen  often  met,  and  discussed  together 
the  matters  that  wrere  disturbing  Christendom.  "  There  are 
but  two  religions  in  the  world,"  said  Olivetan,  the  Protestant. 
"The  one  class  of  religions  are  those  which  men  have 
invented,  in  all  of  which  man  saves  himself  by  ceremonies 
and  good  works;  the  other  is  that  one  religion  which  is 
revealed  in  the  Bible,  and  which  teaches  men  to  look  for 
salvation  solely  to  the  free  grace  of  God."  "  I  will  have 
none  of  your  new  doctrines,"  exclaimed  Calvin;  "think  you 
that  I  have  lived  in  error  all  my  days?" 

But  thoughts  had  been  awakened  in  his  mind  which  he 
could  not  banish  at  will.  Alone  in  his  chamber  he  pon- 
dered upon  his  cousin's  words.  Conviction  of  sin  fastened 
upon  him;  he  saw  himself,  without  an  intercessor,  in  the 
presence  of  a  holy  and  just  Judge.  The  mediation  of  saints, 
good  works,  the  ceremonies  of  the  church,  all  were  powerless 
to  atone  for  sin.  He  could  see  before  him  nothing  but  the 
blackness  of  eternal  despair.  In  vain  the  doctors  of  the 
church  endeavored  to  relieve  his  woe.  Confession,  penance, 
were  resorted  to  in  vain;  they  could  not  reconcile  the  soul 
with  God. 

While  still  engaged  in  these  fruitless  struggles,  Calvin, 
chancing  one  day  to  visit  one  of  the  public  squares,  wit- 
nessed there  the  burning  of  a  heretic.  He  as  filled  with 
wonder  at  the  expression  of  peace  which  rested  upon  the 
martyr's  countenance.  Amid  the  tortures  of  that  dreadful 
death,  and  under  the  more  terrible  condemnation  of  the 
church,  he  manifested  a  faith  and  courage  which  the  young 
student  painfully  contrasted  with  his  own  despair  and 
darkness,  while  living  in  strictest  obedience  to  the  church. 
Upon  the  Bible,  he  kne\v,  the  hereties  rested  their  faith.  lie 
determined  to  study  it,  and  discover,  if  he  could,  the  secret 
of  their  joy. 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMA  TION.  221 

In  the  Bible  he  found  Christ.  "  0  Father,"  he  cried,  "  his 
sacrifice  has  appeased  thy  wrath;  his  blood  has  washed 
away  my  impurities;  his  cross  has  borne  my  curse;  his  death 
has  atoned  for  me.  We  had  devised  for  ourselves  many  use- 
less follies,  but  thou  hast  placed  thy  Word  before  me  like  a 
torch,  and  thou  hast  touched  my  heart,  in  order  that  I  may 
hold  in  abomination  all  other  merits  save  those  of  Jesus." 

Calvin  had  been  educated  for  the  priesthood.  When 
only  twelve  years  of  age  he  had  been  appointed  to  the 
chaplaincy  of  a  small  church,  and  his  head  had  been  shorn 
by  the  bishop  in  accordance  with  the  canon  of  the  church. 
He  did  not  receive  consecration,  nor  did  he  fulfill  the  duties 
of  a  priest,  but  he  became  a  member  of  the  clergy,  holding 
the  title  of  his  office,  and  receiving  an  allowance  in  consider- 
ation thereof. 

Now,  feeling  that  he  could  never  become  a  priest,  he 
turned  for  a  time  to  the  study  of  law,  but  finally  abandoned 
this  purpose,  and  determined  to  devote  his  life  to  the  gospel. 
But  he  hesitated  to  become  a  public  teacher.  He  was  nat- 
urally timid,  and  was  burdened  with  a  sense  of  the  weighty 
responsibility  of  the  position,  and  he  desired  to  still  devote 
himself  to  study.  The  earnest  entreaties  of  his  friends,  how- 
ever, at  last  won  his  consent.  "  Wonderful  it  is,"  he  said. 
"  that  one  of  so  lowly  an  origin  should  be  exalted  to  so  great 
dignity." 

Quietly  did  Calvin  enter  upon  his  work,  and  his  words 
were  as  the  dew  falling  to  refresh  the  earth.  He  had  left 
Paris,  and  was  now  in  a  provincial  town  under  the  protection 
of  the  princess  Margaret,  who,  loving  the  gospel,  extended 
her  protection  to  its  disciples.  Calvin,  was  still  a  youth,  of 
gentle,  unpretentious  bearing.  His  work  began  with  the 
people  at  their  homes.  Surrounded  by  the  members  of  the 
household,  he  read  the  Bible,  and  opened  the  truths  of  salva- 
tion. Those  who  heard  the  message,  carried  the  good  news 
to  others,  and  soon  the  teacher  passed  beyond  the  city  to  the 
outlying  towns  and  hamlets.  To  both  the  castle  and  the 


222  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


cabin  he  found  entrance,  and  he  went  forward,  laying  the 
foundation  of  churches  that  were  to  yield  fearless  witnesses 
for  the  truth. 

A  few  months  and  he  was  again  in  Paris.  There  was 
unwonted  agitation  in  the  circle  of  learned  men  and  schol- 
ars. The  study  of  the  ancient  languages  had  led  men  to 
the  Bible,  and  many  whose  hearts  were  untouched  by  its 
truths  were  eagerly  discussing  them,  and  even  giving  battle 
to  the  champions  of  Romanism.  Calvin,  though  an  able 
combatant  in  the  fields  of  theological  controversy,  had  a 
higher  mission  to  accomplish  than  that  of  these  noisy  school- 
men. The  minds  of  men  were  stirred,  and  now  was  the 
time  to  open  to  them  the  truth.  While  the  halls  of  the  uni- 
versities were  filled  with  the  clamor  of  theological  disputa- 
tion, Calvin  was  making  his  way  from  house  to  house, 
opening  the  Bible  to  the  people,  and  speaking  to  them  of 
Christ  and  him  crucified. 

In  God's  providence,  Paris  was  to  receive  another  invita- 
tion to  accept  the  gospel.  The  call  of  Lefevre  and  Farel 
had  been  rejected,  but  again  the  message  was  to  be  heard 
by  all  classes  in  that  great  capital.  The  king,  influenced  by 
political  considerations,  had  not  yet  fully  sided  with  Rome 
against  the  Reformation.  Margaret  still  clung  to  the  hope 
that  Protestantism  was  to  triumph  in  France.  She  resolved 
that  the  reformed  faith  should  be  preached  in  Paris.  Dur- 
ing the  absence  of  the  king,  she  ordered  a  Protestant  min- 
ister to  preach  in  the  churches  of  the  city.  This  being  for- 
bidden by  the  papal  dignitaries,  the  princess  threw  open  the 
palace.  An  apartment  was  fitted  up  as  a  chapel,  and  it  was 
announced  that  every  day,  at  a  specified  hour,  a  sermon 
would  be  preached,  and  the  people  of  every  rank  and  sta- 
tion were  invited  to  attend.  Crowds  flocked  to  the  service. 
Not  only  the  chapel,  but  the  ante-chambers  and  halls  were 
thronged.  Thousands  every  day  assembled, — nobles,  states- 
men, lawyers,  merchants,  and  artisans.  The  king,  instead  of 
forbidding  the  assemblies,  ordered  that  two  of  the  churches 
of  Paris  should  be  opened.  Never  before  had  the  city  been 


THE  FRENCH  REFORM  A  TION.  223 

so  moved  by  the  Word  of  God.  The  spirit  of  life  from 
Heaven  seemed  to  be  breathed  upon  the  people.  Temper- 
ance, purity,  order,  and  industry  were  taking  the  place  of 
drunkenness,  licentiousness,  strife,  and  idleness. 

But  the  hierarchy  were  not  idle.  The  king  still  refused 
to  interfere  to  stop  the  preaching,  and  they  turned  to  the 
populace.  No  means  were  spared  to  excite  the  fears,  the 
prejudices,  and  the  fanaticism  of  the  ignorant  and  supersti- 
tious multitudes.  Yielding  blindly  to  her  false  teachers, 
Paris,  like  Jerusalem  of  old,  knew  not  the  time  of  her  visita- 
tion, nor  the  things  which  belonged  unto  her  peace.  For 
two  years  the  Word  of  God  was  preached  in  the  capital ;  but 
while  there  were  many  who  accepted  the  gospel,  the  majority 
of  the  people  rejected  it.  Francis  had  made  a  show  of  toler- 
ation, merely  to  serve  his  own  purposes,  and  the  papists  suc- 
ceeded in  regaining  the  ascendency.  Again  the  churches 
were  closed,  and  the  stake  was  set  up. 

Calvin  was  still  in  Paris,  preparing  himself  by  study, 
meditation,  and  prayer,  for  his  future  labors,  and  continuing 
to  spread  the  light.  At  last,  however,  suspicion  fastened 
upon  him.  The  authorities  determined  to  bring  him  to  the 
flames.  Regarding  himself  as  secure  in  his  seclusion,  he 
had  no  thought  of  danger,  when  friends  came  hurrying  to 
his  room  with  the  news  that  officers  were  on  their  way  to 
arrest  him,  At  the  instant  a  loud  knocking  was  heard  at 
the  outer  entrance.  There  was  not  a  moment  to  be  lost. 
Some  of  his  friends  detained  the  officers  at  the  door,  while 
others  assisted  the  reformer  to  let  himself  down  from  a 
window,  and  he  rapidly  made  his  way  to  the  outskirts  of  the 
city.  Finding  shelter  in  the  cottage  of  a  laborer  who  was  a 
friend  to  the  reform,  he  disguised  himself  in  the  garments 
of  his  host,  and,  shouldering  a  hoe,  started  on  his  journey. 
Traveling  southward  he  again  found  refuge  in  the  domin- 
ions of  Margaret. 

Here  for  a  few  months  he  remained,  safe  under  the  pro- 
tection of  powerful  friends,  and  engaged,  as  before,  in  study. 
But  his  heart  was  set  upon  the  evangelization  of  France,  and 


224  T2U-:    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

he  could  not  long,  remain  inactive.  As  soon  as  the  storm 
had  somewhat  abated,  he  sought  a  new  field  of  labor  in 
Poitiers,  where  was  a  university,  and  where  already  the 
new  opinions  had  found  favor.  Persons  of  all  classes  gladly 
listened  to  the  gospel.  There  was  no  public  preaching,  but 
in  the  home  of  the  chief  magistrate,  in  his  own  lodgings, 
and  sometimes  in  a  public  garden,  Calvin  opened  the  words 
of  eternal  life  to  those  who  desired  to  listen.  After  a  time, 
as  the  number  of  hearers  increased,  it  was  thought  safer  to 
assemble  outside  the  city.  A  cave  in  the  side  of  a  deep 
and  narrow  gorge,  where  trees  and  overhanging  rocks  made 
the  seclusion  still  more  complete,  was  chosen  as  the  place  of 
meeting.  Little  companies,  leaving  the  city  by  different 
routes,  found  their  way  hither.  In  this  retired  spot  the  Bible 
was  read  and  explained.  Here  the  Lord's  Supper  was  cele- 
brated for  the  first  time  by  the  Protestants  of  France.  From 
this  little  church  several  faithful  evangelists  were  sent  out. 

Once  more  Calvin  returned  to  Paris.  He  could  not  even 
yet  relinquish  the  hope  that  France  as  a  nation  would 
accept  the  Reformation,  But  he  found  almost  every  door 
of  labor  closed.  To  teach  the  gospel  was  to  take  the  direct 
road  to  the  stake,  and  he  at  last  determined  to  depart  to 
Germany.  Scarcely  had  he  left  France  when  a  storm  burst 
over  the  Protestants,  that,  had  he  remained,  must  surely 
have  involved  him  in  the  general  ruin. 

The  French  reformers,  eager  to  see  their  country  keeping 
pace  with  Germany  and  Switzerland,  determined  to  strike  a 
bold  blow  against  the  superstitions  of  Rome,  that  should 
arouse  the  whole  nation.  Accordingly  placards  attacking 
the  mass  were  in  one  night  posted  all  over  France.  Instead 
of  advancing  the  reform,  this  zealous  but  ill-judged  move- 
ment brought  ruin,  not  only  upon  its  propagators,  but 
upon  the  friends  of  the  reformed  faith  throughout  France. 
It  gave  the  Romanists  what  they  had  long  desired, — a 
pretext  for  demanding  the  utter  destruction  of  the  heretics 
as  agitators  dangerous  to  the  stability  of  the  throne  and 
the  peace  of  the  nation. 


77/7:7  'FKKXCir  KKFOKMA  TTON.  225 


By  some  secret  hand — whether  of  indiscreet  friend  or  wily 
foe  was  never  known — one  of  the  placards  was  attached  to 
the  door  of  the  king's  private  chamber.  The  monarch  was 
filled  with  horror.  In  this  paper,  superstitions  that  had 
receive^  the  veneration  of  ages  were  attacked  with  an  un- 
sparing hand.  And  the  unexampled  boldness  of  obtruding 
these  plain  and  startling  utterances  into  the  royal  presence, 
aroused  the  wrath  of  the  king.  In  his  amazement  he  stood 
for  a  little  time  trembling  and  speechless.  Then  his  rage 
found  utterance  in  the  terrible  words:  "Let  all  be  seized; 
and  let  Lutheranism  be  totally  exterminated."  The  die  was 
cast.  The  king  had  determined  to  throw  himself  fully  on 
the  side  of  Rome. 

Measures  were  at  once  taken  for  the  arrest  of  every  Lu- 
theran in  Paris.  A  poor  artisan,  an  adherent  of  the  reformed 
faith,  who  had  been  accustomed  to  summon  the  believers 
to  their  secret  assemblies,  was  seized;  and  with  the  threat  of 
instant  death  at  the  stake,  was  commanded  to  conduct  the 
papist  emissary  to  the  home  of  every  Protestant  in  the  city. 
He  shrunk  in  horror  from  the  base  proposal,  but  at  last  fear 
of  the  flames  prevailed,  and  he  consented  to  become  the 
betrayer  of  his  brethren.  Preceded  by  the  host,  and  sur- 
rounded by  a  train  of  priests,  incense-bearers,  monks,  and 
soldiers,  Morin,  the  royal  detective,  with  the  traitor,  slowly 
and  silently  passed  through  the  streets  of  the  city.  The 
demonstration  was  ostensibly  in  honor  of  the  "holy  sacra- 
ment," an  act  of  expiation  for  the  insult  put  upon  the  mass 
'by  the  protesters.  But  beneath  this  pageant  a  deadly  pur- 
pose was  concealed.  On  arriving  opposite  the  house  of  a 
Lutheran,  the  betrayer  made  a  sign,  but  no  word  was  uttered. 
The  procession  halted,  the  house  was  entered,  the  family  were 
dragged  forth  and  chained,  and  the  terrible  company  went 
forward  in  search  of  fresh  victims.  "  No  house  was  spared, 
great  or  small,  not  even  the  colleges  of  the  University  of 
Paris.  Morin  made  the  whole  city  quake."  "The  reign  of 
terror  had  begun." 

The  victims  were  put  to  death  with  cruel  torture,  it  being 


226  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

specially  ordered  that  the  fire  should  be  lowered,  in  order  to 
prolong  their  agony.  But  they  died  as  conquerors.  Their 
constancy  was  unshaken,  their  peace  unclouded.  Their  per- 
secutors, powerless  to  move  their  inflexible  firmness,  felt 
themselves  defeated.  "The  scaffolds  were  distributed  over 
all  the  quarters  of  Paris,  and  the  burnings  followed  on  suc- 
cessive days,  the  design  being  to  spread  the  terror  of  hen  sy 
by  spreading  the  executions.  The  advantage,"  however,  in 
the  end,  remained  with  the  gospel.  All  Paris  was  enabled 
to  see  what  kind  of  men  the  new  opinions  could  produce. 
There  is  no  pulpit  like  the  martyr's  pile.  The  serene  joy 
that  lighted  up  the  faces  of  these  men  as  they  passed  along 
to  the  place  of  execution,  their  heroism  as  they  stood  amid 
the  bitter  flames,  their  meek  forgiveness  of  injuries,  trans- 
formed, in  instances  not  a  few,  anger  into  pity,  and  hate  into 
love,  and  pleaded  with  resistless  eloquence  in  behalf  of  the 
gospel." 

The  priests,  bent  upon  keeping  the  popular  fury  at  its 
height,  circulated  the  most  terrible  accusations  against  the 
Protestants.  They  were  charged  with  plotting  to  massacre 
the  Catholics,  to  overthrow  the  government,  and  to  murder 
the  king.  Not  a  shadow  of  evidence  could  be  produced  in 
support  of  the  allegations.  Yet  these  prophecies  of  evil  were 
to  have  a  fulfillment;  under  far  different  circumstances, 
however,  and  from  causes  of  an  opposite  character.  The 
cruelties  that  were  inflicted  upon  the  innocent  Protestants  by 
the  Catholics  accumulated  in  a  weight  of  retribution,  and  in 
after-centuries  wrought  the  very  doom  they  had  predicted 
to  be  impending,  upon  the  king,  his  government,  and  sub- 
jects; but  it  was  brought  about  by  infidels,  and  by  the  papists 
themselves.  It  was  not  the  establishment,  but  the  suppres- 
sion of  Protestantism,  that,  three  hundred  years  later,  was 
to  bring  upon  France  these  dire  calamities. 

Suspicion,  distrust,  and  terror  now  pervaded  all  classes  of 
society.  Amid  the  general  alarm  it  was  seen  how  deep  a  hold 
the  Lutheran  teaching  had  gained  upon  the  minds  of  men 


THE  FRENCH  REFORM  A  T10N.  227 

who  stood  highest  for  education,  influence,  and  excellence  of 
character.  Positions  of  trust  and  honor  were  suddenly  found 
vacant.  Artisans,  planters,  scholars,  professors  in  the  uni- 
versities, authors,  and  even  courtiers,  disappeared.  Hundreds 
fled  from  Paris,  self-constituted  exiles  from  their  native  land, 
in  many  cases  thus  giving  the  first  intimation  that  they 
favored  the  reformed  faith.  The  papists  looked  about  them 
in  amazement  at  thought  of  the  unsuspected  heretics  that 
had  been  tolerated  among  them.  Their  rage  spent  itself 
upon  the  multitudes  of  humbler  victims  who  were  within 
their  power.  The  prisons  were  crowded,  and  the  very  air 
seemed  darkened  with  the  smoke  of  burning  piles,  kindled 
for  the  confessors  of  the  gospel. 

Francis  I.  had  gloried  in  being  a  leader  in  the  great 
movement  for  the  revival  of  learning  which  marked  the 
opening  of  the  sixteenth  century.  He  had  delighted  to 
gather  at  his  court  men  of  letters  from  every  country.  To 
his  love  of  learning  and  his  contempt  for  the  ignorance  and 
superstition  of  the  monks  was  due,  in  part,  at  least,  the  degree 
of  toleration  that  had  been  granted  to  the  reform.  But, 
inspired  with  zeal  to  stamp  out  heresy,  this  patron  of  learn- 
ing issued  an  edict  declaring  printing  abolished  all  over 
France!  Francis  I.  presents  one  among  the  many  exam- 
ples on  record  showing  that  intellectual  culture  is  not  a 
safeguard  against  religious  intolerance  and  persecution. 

France  by  a  solemn  and  public  ceremony  was  to  commit 
herself  fully  to  the  destruction  of  Protestantism.  The  priests 
demanded  that  the  affront  offered  to  high  Heaven  in  the 
condemnation  of  the  mass,  be  expiated  in  blood,  and  that 
the  king,  in  behalf  of  his  people,  publicly  give  his  sanction 
to  the  dreadful  work. 

The  21st  of  January,  1535,  was  fixed  upon  for  the  awful 
ceremonial.  The  superstitious  fears  and  bigoted  hatred  of 
the  whole  nation  had  been  roused.  Paris  was  thronged 
with  the  multitudes  that  from  all  the  surrounding  country 
crowded  her  streets.  The  day  was  to  be  ushered  in  by  a 


228  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

vast  and  imposing  procession.  Along  the  line  of  march  the 
houses  were  draped  in  mourning.  At  intervals  altars  were 
erected,  and  before  every  door  was  a  lighted  torch  in  honor 
of  the  "  holy  sacrament."  Before  daybreak  the  procession 
formed,  at  the  palace  of  the  king.  After  the  crosses  and 
banners  of  the  parishes,  came  citizens,  walking  two  and  two, 
and  bearing  lighted  torches.  The  four  orders  of  friars  fol- 
lowed, each  in  its  own  peculiar  dress.  Then  came  a  vast 
collection  of  famous  relics.  Following  these  rode  lordly 
ecclesiastics  in  their  purple  and  scarlet  robes  and  jeweled 
adornings,  a  gorgeous  and  glittering  array. 

The  host  was  borne  under  a  splendid  canopy,  supported 
by  four  princes  of  highest  rank.  After  them  walked  the 
monarch,  divested  of  his  crown  and  royal  robe,  with  uncov- 
ered head  and  downcast  eyes,  and  bearing  in  his  hand  a 
lighted  taper.  Thus  the  king  of  France  appeared  publicly 
as  a  penitent.  At  every  altar  he  bowed  down  in  humilia- 
tion, not  for  the  vices  that  denied  his  soul,  nor  the  innocent 
blood  that  stained  his  hands,  but  for  the  deadly  sin  of  his 
subjects  who  had  dared  to  condemn  the  mass.  Following 
him  came  the  queen  and  the  dignitaries  of  State,  also  walk- 
ing two  and  two,  each  with  a  lighted  torch. 

As  a  part  of  the  services  of  the  day,  the  monarch  him- 
self addressed  the  high  officials  of  the  kingdom  in  the  great 
hall  of  the  bishop's  palace.  With  a  sorrowful  countenance 
he  appeared  before  them,  and  in  words  of  moving  eloquence 
bewailed  the  "  crime,  the  blasphemy,  the  day  of  sorrow  and 
disgrace,"  that  had  come  upon  the  nation.  And  he  called 
upon  every  loyal  subject  to  aid  in  the  extirpation  of  the 
pestilent  heresy  that  threatened  France  with  ruin.  "  As  true, 
Messieurs,  as  I  am  your  king,"  he  said,  "  if  I  knew  one  of  my 
own  limbs  spotted  or  infected  with  this  detestable  rottenness, 
I  would  give  it  to  you  to  cut  off.  ...  And,  further,  if  I 
saw  one  of  my  children  denied  by  it,  I  would  not  spare 
him.  ...  I  would  deliver  him  up  myself,  and  would 
sacrifice  him  to  God."  Tears  choked  his  utterance,  and  the 


THE  FRENCH  REFORM  A  TION.  229 

whole  assembly  wept,  with  one  accord  exclaiming,  "We  will 
live  and  die  in  the  Catholic  religion." 

Terrible  had  become  the  darkness  of  the  nation  that  had 
rejected  the  light  of  truth.  "  The  grace  that  bringeth  salva- 
tion "  had  appeared;  but  France,  after  beholding  its  power 
and  holiness,  after  thousands  had  been  drawn  by  its  divine 
beauty,  after  cities  and  hamlets  had  been  illuminated  by  its 
radiance,  had  turned  away,  choosing  darkness  rather  than 
light.  They  had  put  from  them  the  iieavenly  gift,  when  it 
was  offered  them.  They  had  called  evil  good,  and  good  evil, 
till  they  had  fallen  victims  to  their  willful  self-deception. 
Now,  though  they  might  actually  believe  that  they  were  doing 
God  service  in  persecuting  his  people,  yet  their  sincerity  did* 
not  render  them  guiltless.  The  light  that  would  have  saved 
them  from  deception,  from  staining  their  souls  with  blood- 
guiltiness,  they  had  willfully  rejected. 

A  solemn  oath  to  extirpate  heresy  was  taken,  in  the  great 
cathedral  where,  nearly  three  centuries  later,  the  "  Goddess  of 
Reason  "  was  to  be  enthroned  by  a  nation  that  had  forgotten 
the  living  God.  Again  the  procession  formed,  and  the  rep- 
resentatives of  France  set  out  to  begin  the  work  which  they 
had  sworn  to  do.  At  intervals  along  the  homeward  route, 
scaffolds  had  been  erected  for  the  execution  of  heretics,  and 
it  was  arranged  that  at  the  approach  of  the  king  the  pile 
should  be  lighted,  that  he  might  thus  be  witness  to  the  whole 
terrible  spectacle.  The  details  of  the  tortures  endured  by 
these  witnesses  for  Christ  are  too  harrowing  for  recital ;  but 
there  was  no  wavering  on  the  part  of  the  victims.  On  being 
urged  to  recant,  one  answered,  "  I  only  believe  in  what  the 
prophets  and  apostles  formerly  preached,  and  what  all  the 
company  of  the  saints  believed.  My  faith  has  a  confidence 
in  God  which  will  resist  all  the  power  of  hell." 

Again  and  again  the  procession  halted  at  the  places  of 
torture.  Upon  reaching  their  starting-point  at  the  royal  pal- 
ace, the  crowd  dispersed,  and  the  king  and  the  prelates  with- 
drew, well  satisfied  with  the  day's  proceedings,  and  congrat- 


230  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ul  ating  themselves  that  the  work  now  begun  would  be  con- 
tinued to  the  complete  destruction  of  heresy. 

The  gospel  of  peace  which  France  had  rejected  was  to  be 
only  too  surely  rooted  out,  and  terrible  would  be  the  results. 
On  the  21st  of  January,  1793,  two  hundred  and  fifty-eight 
years  from  the  very  day  that  fully  committed  France  to  the 
persecution  of  the  reformers,  another  procession,  with  a  far 
different  purpose,  passed  through  the  streets  of  Paris.  "Again 
the  king  was  the  chief  figure;  again  there  were  tumult 
and  shouting;  again  there  was  heard  the  cry  for  more  vic- 
tims; again  there  were  black  scaffolds;  and  again  the  scenes 
of  the  day  were  closed  by  horrid  executions;  Louis  XVI., 
*  struggling  hand  to  hand  with  his  jailers  and  executioners, 
was  dragged  forward  to  the  block,  and  there  held  down  by 
main  force  till  the  ax  had  fallen,  and  his  dissevered  head 
fell  on  the  scaffold."  Nor  was  the  king  the  only  victim; 
near  the  same  spot  two  thousand  and  eight  hundred  human 
beings  perished  by  the  guillotine  during  the  bloody  days  of 
the  reign  of  terror. 

The  Reformation  had  presented  to  the  world  an  open 
Bible,  unsealing  the  precepts  of  the  law  of  God,  and  urging 
its  claims  upon  the  consciences  of  the  people.  Infinite 
love  had  unfolded  to  men  the  statutes  and  principles  of 
Heaven.  God  had  said,  "  Keep  therefore  and  do  them ;  for 
this  is  your  wisdom  and  your  understanding  in  the  sight  of 
the  nations,  which  shall  hear  all  these  statutes,  and  say, 
Surely  this  great  nation  is  a  wise  and  understanding  peo- 
ple."1 When  France  rejected  the  gift  of  Heaven,  she 
sowed  the  seeds  of  anarchy  and  ruin;  and  the  inevitable 
outworking  of  cause  and  effect  resulted  in  the  Revolution 
and  the  ivi-n  of  terror. 

Long  before  the  persecution  excited  by  the  placards,  the 
bold  and  ardent  Farel  had  been  forced  to  flee  from  the  land 
of  his  birth,  lie  r. -paired  to  Switzerland,  and  by  his  labors, 
seconding  the  work  of  Zwingle,  he  helped  to  turn  the  scale 
in  favor  of  the  Reformation.  His  later  years  were  to  be 

*Deut.4:6. 


THE  FRENCH  REFORMATION.  231 


spent  here,  yet  he  continued  to  exert  a  decided  influence 
upon  the  reform  in  France.  During  the  first  years  of  his 
exile,  his  efforts  were  especially  directed  to  spreading  the 
gospel  in  his  native  country.  He  spent  considerable  time  in 
preaching  among  his  countrymen  near  the  frontier,  where 
with  tireless  vigilance  he  watched  the  conflict,  and  aided 
by  his  words  of  encouragement  and  counsel.  With  the 
assistance  of  other  exiles,  the  writings  of  the  German  reform- 
ers were  translated  into  the  French  language,  and,  together 
with  the  French  Bible,  were  printed  in  large  quantities.  By 
colporters,  these  works  were  sold  extensively  in  France. 
They  were  furnished  to  the  colporters  at  a  low  price,  and 
thus  the  profits  of  the  work  enabled  them  to  continue  it. 

Farel  entered  upon  his  work  in  Switzerland  in  the  humble 
guise  of  a  school-master.  Repairing  to  a  secluded  parish, 
he  devoted  himself  to  the  instruction  of  children.  Besides 
the  usual  branches  of  learning,  he  cautiously  introduced 
the  truths  of  the  Bible,  hoping  through  the  children  to 
reach  their  parents.  There  were  some  who  believed,  but 
the  priests  came  forward  to  stop  the  work,  and  the  super- 
stitious country  people  were  roused  to  oppose  it.  "That 
cannot  be  the  gospel  of  Christ,"  urged  the  priests,  "seeing 
the  preaching  of  it  does  not  bring  peace  but  war."  Like 
the  first  disciples,  when  persecuted  in  one  city  he  fled  to 
another.  From  village  to  village,  from  city  to  city,  he  went; 
traveling  on  foot,  enduring  hunger,  cold,  and  weariness,  and 
everywhere  in  peril  of  his  life.  He  preached  in  the  market- 
places, in  the  churches,  sometimes  in  the  pulpits  of  the  ca- 
thedrals. Sometimes  he  found  the  church  empty  of  hearers; 
at  times  his  preaching  was  interrupted  by  shouts  and  jeers, 
again  he  was  pulled  violently  out  of  the  pulpit.  More  than 
once  he  was  set  upon  by  the  rabble,  and  beaten  almost  to 
death.  Yet  he  pressed  forward.  Though  often  repulsed, 
with  unwearying  persistence  he  returned  to  the  attack ;  and, 
one  after  another,  he  saw  towns  and  cities  which  had  been 
strongholds  of  popery,  opening  their  gates  to  the  gospel. 

18 


232  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  little  parish  where  he  fiad  first  labored,  soon  accepted 
the  reformed  faith.  The  cities  of  Morat  and  Neuchatel  also 
renounced  the  Eomish  rites,  and  removed  the  idolatrous 
images  from  their  churches. 

Farel  had  long  desired  to  plant  the  Protestant  standard 
in  Geneva.  If  this  city  could  be  won,  it  would  be  a  center 
for  the  Reformation  in  France,  in  Switzerland,  and  iii  Italy. 
With  this  object  before  him,  he  had  continued  his  labors 
until  many  of  the  surrounding  towns  and  hamlets  had  been 
gained.  Then  with  a  single  companion  he  entered  Geneva. 
But  only  two  sermons  was  he  permitted  to  preach.  The 
priests,  having  vainly  endeavored  to  secure  his  condemna- 
tion by  the  civil  authorities,  summoned  him  before  an  eccle- 
siastical council,  to  which  they  came  with  arms  concealed 
under  their  robes,  determined  to  take  his  life.  Outside  the 
hall,  a  furious  mob,  with  clubs  and  swords,  was  gathered  to 
make  sure  of  his  death  if  he  should  succeed  in  escaping 
the  council.  The  presence  of  magistrates  and  an  armed 
force,  however,  saved  him.  Early  next  morning  he  was 
conducted,  with  his  companion,  across  the  lake  to  a  place  of 
safety.  Thus  ended  his  first  effort  to  evangelize  Geneva. 

For  the  next  trial  a  lowlier  instrument  was  chosen, — a 
young  man,  so  humble  in  appearance  that  he  was  coldly 
treated  even  by  the  professed  friends  of  reform.  But  what 
could  such  a  one  do  where  Farel  had  been  rejected?  How 
could  one  of  little  courage  and  experience  withstand  the 
tempest  before  which  the  strongest  and  bravest  had  been 
forced  to  flee?  "Not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  my 
Spirit,  saith  the  Lord." l  "  God  hath  chosen  the  weak  things 
of  the  world  to  confound  the  things  which  are  mighty." 
"Because  the  foolishness  of  God  is  wiser  than  men;  and  the 
weakness  of  God  is  stronger  than  men." 2 

Froment  began  his  work  as  a  school-master.  The  truths 
which  he  taught  the  children  at  school,  they  repeated  at 
their  homes.  Soon  the  parents  came  to  hear  the  Bible 
explained,  until  the  school-room  was  filled  with  attentive 

iZech.  4:6.  H  Cor.  1  :27,  25. 


THE  FRENCH  RE  FORMA  TION.  233 


listeners.  New  Testaments  and  tracts  were  freely  distributed, 
and  they  reached  many  who  dared  not  come  openly  to 
listen  to  the  new  doctrines.  After  a  time  this  laborer  also 
was  forced  to  flee ;  but  the  truths  he  taught  had  taken  hold 
upon  the  minds  of  the  people.  The  Reformation  had  been 
planted,  and  it  continued  to  strengthen  and  extend.  The 
preachers  returned,  and  through  their  labors  the  Protestant 
worship  wras  finally  established  in  Geneva. 

The  city  had  already  declared  for  the  Reformation,  when 
Calvin,  after  various  wanderings  and  vicissitudes,  entered 
its  gates.  Returning  from  a  last  visit  to  his  birthplace,  he 
was  on  his  way  to  Basel,  when,  finding  the  direct  road  occu- 
pied by  the  armies  of  Charles  V.,  he  was  forced  to  take  the 
circuitous  route  by  Geneva. 

In  this  visit,  Farel  recognized  the  hand  of  God.  Though 
Geneva  had  accepted  the  reformed  faith,  yet  a  great  work 
remained  to  be  accomplished  here.  It  is  not  as  communi- 
ties but  as  individuals  that  men  are  converted  to  God; 
the  work  of  regeneration  must  be  wrought  in  the  heart 
and  conscience  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  not  by 
the  decrees,  of  councils.  While  the  people  of  Geneva  had 
cast  off  the  authority  of  Rome,  they  were-  not  so  ready  to 
renounce  the  vices  that  had  flourished  under  her  rule.  To 
establish  here  the  pure  principles  of  the  gospel,  and  to  pre- 
pare this  people  to  fill  worthily  the  position  to  which  Provi- 
dence seemed  calling  them,  was  no  light  task. 

Farel  was  confident  that  he  had  found  in  Calvin  one 
whom  he  could  unite  with  himself  in  this  work.  In  the 
name  of  God  he  solemnly  adjured  the  young  evangelist  to 
remain  and  labor  here.  Calvin  drew  back  in  alarm.  Timid 
and  peace-loving,  he  shrank  from  contact  with  the  bold, 
independent,  and  even  violent  spirit  of  the  Genevese.  The 
feebleness  of  his  health,  together  with  his  studious  habits, 
led  him  to  seek  retirement.  Believing  that  by  his  pen  he 
could  best  serve  the  cause  of  reform,  he  desired  to  find  a 
quiet  retreat  for  study,  and  there,  through  the  press,  instruct 


234  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


and  build  up  the  churches.  But  Farel's  solemn  admonition 
came  to  him  as  a  call  from  Heaven,  arfd  he  dared  not  refuse. 
It  seemed  to  him,  he  said,  "that  the  hand  of  God  was 
stretched  down  from  Heaven,  that  it  laid  hold  of  him, 
and  fixed  him  irrevocably  to  the  place  he  was  so  impatient 
to  leave." 

At  this  time  great  perils  surrounded  the  Protestant  cause. 
The  anathemas  of  the  pope  thundered  against  Geneva,  and 
mighty  nations  threatened  it  with  destruction.  How  was 
this  little  city  to  resist  the  powerful  hierarchy  that  had  so 
often  forced  kings  and  emperors  to  submission?  How  could 
it  stand  against  the  armies  of  the  world's  great  conquerors? 

Throughout  Christendom,  Protestantism  was  menaced  by 
formidable  foes.  The  first  triumphs  of  the  Eeformation 
past,  Rome  summoned  new  forces,  hoping  to  accomplish  its 
destruction.  At  this  time,  the  order  of  the  Jesuits  was  cre- 
ated, the  most  cruel,  unscrupulous,  and  powerful  of  all  the 
champions  of  popery.  Cut  off  from  every  earthly  tie  and 
human  interest,  dead  to  the  claims  of  natural  affection,  rea- 
son and  conscience  wholly  silenced,  they  knew  no  rule,  no 
tie,  but  that  of  their  order,  and  no  duty  but  to  extend  its 
power.  The  gospel  of  Christ  had  enabled  its  adherents  to 
meet  danger  and  endure  suffering,  undismayed  by  cold,  hun- 
ger, toil,  and  poverty,  to  uphold  the  banner  of  truth  in  face 
of  the  rack,  the  dungeon,  and  the  stake.  To  combat  these 
forces,  Jesuitism  inspired  its  followers  with  a  fanaticism  that 
enabled  them  to  endure  like  dangers,  and  to  oppose  to  the 
power  of  truth  all  the  weapons  of  deception.  There  was  no 
crime  too  great  for  them  to  commit,  no  deception  too  base  for 
them  to  practice,  no  disguise  too  difficult  for  them  to  assume. 
Vowed  to  perpetual  poverty  ami  humility,  it  was  their 
studied  aim  to  secure  wealth  and  power,  to  be  devoted  to  the 
overthrow  of  Protestantism,  and  the  re-establishment  of 
the  papal  supremacy. 

When  appearing  as  members  of  (heir  order,  they  wore  a 
garb  of  sanctity,  visiting  prisons  and  hospitals,  ministering 


THE  FRENCH  REFORM  A  TION.  235 

to  the  sick  and  thfe  poor,  professing  to  have  renounced  the 
world,  and  bearing  the  sacred  name  of  Jesus,  who  went 
about  doing  good.  But  under  this  blameless  exterior  the 
most  criminal  and  deadly  purposes  were  concealed.  It  was 
a  fundamental  principle  of  the  order  that  the  end  justifies 
the  means.  By  this  code,  lying,  theft,  perjury,  assassination, 
were  not  only  pardonable  but  commendable,  when  they 
served  the  interests  of  the  church.  Under  various  disguises 
the  Jesuits  worked  their  way  into  offices  of  State,  climbing 
up  to  be  the  counselors  of  kings,  and  shaping  the  policy  of 
nations.  They  became  servants,  to  act  as  spies  upon  their 
masters.  They  established  colleges  for  the  sons  of  princes 
and  nobles,  and  schools  for  the  common  people;  and  the 
children  of  Protestant  parents  were  drawn  into  an  observance 
of  popish  rites.  All  the  outward  pomp  and  display  of  the 
Romish  worship  was  brought  to  bear  to  confuse  the  mind, 
and  dazzle  and  captivate  the  imagination ;  and  thus  the  lib- 
erty for  which  the  fathers  had  toiled  and  bled  was  betrayed 
by  the  sons.  The  Jesuits  rapidly  spread  themselves  over 
Europe,  and  wherever  they  went,  there  followed  a  revival  of 
popery. 

To  give  them  greater  power,  a  bull  was  issued  re-estab- 
lishing the  Inquisition.  Notwithstanding  the  general  abhor- 
rence with  which  it  was  regarded,  even  in  Catholic  countries, 
this  terrible  tribunal  was  again  set  up  by  popish  rulers,  and 
atrocities  too  terrible  to  bear  the  light  of  day  were  repeated 
in  its  secret  dungeons.  In  many  countries,  thousands  upon 
thousands  of  the  very  flower  of  the  nation,  the  purest  and 
noblest,  the  most* intellectual  and  highly  educated,  pious  and 
devoted  pastors,  industrious  and  patriotic  citizens,  brilliant 
scholars,  talented  artists,  skillful  artisans,  were  slain,  or  forced 
to  flee  to  other  lands. 

Such  were  the  means  which  Rome  had  invoked  to  quench 
the  light  of  the  Reformation,  to  withdraw  from  men  the 
Bible,  and  to  restore  the  ignorance  v)and  superstition  of  the 
Dark  Ages.  But  under  God's  blessing  and  the  labors  of  those 


236  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

noble  men  whom  he  had  raised  up  to  succeed  Luther,  Protest- 
antism was  not  overthrown.  Not  to  the  favor  or  arms  of 
princes  was  it  to  owe  its  strength.  The  smallest  countries,  the 
humblest  and  least  powerful  nations,  became  its  strongholds. 
It  was  little  Geneva  in  the  midst  of  mighty  foes  plotting  her 
destruction;  it  was  Holland  on  her  sand-banks  by  the  North- 
ern Sea,  wrestling  against  the  tyranny  of  Spain,  then  the 
greatest  and  most  opulent  of  kingdoms ;  it  was  bleak,  sterile 
Sweden,  that  gained  victories  for  the  Reformation. 

For  nearly  thirty  years,  Calvin  labored  at  Geneva ;  first 
to  establish  there  a  church  adhering  to  the  morality  of  the 
Bible,  and  then  for  the  advancement  of  the  Reformation 
throughout  Europe.  His  course  as  a  public  leader  was  not 
faultless,  nor  were  his  doctrines  free  from  error.  But  he  was 
instrumental  in  promulgating  truths  that  were  of  special 
importance  in  his  time,  in  maintaining  the  principles  of 
Protestantism  against  the  fast-returning  tide  of  popery,  and 
in  promoting  in  the  reformed  churches  simplicity  and  purity 
of  life,  in  place  of  the  pride  and  corruption  fostered  under 
the  Romish  teaching. 

From  Geneva,  publications  and  teachers  went  out  to 
spread  the  reformed  doctrines.  .To  this  point  the  persecuted 
of  all  lands  looked  for  instruction,  counsel,  and  encourage- 
ment. The  city  of  Calvin  became  a  refuge  for  the  hunted 
reformers  of  all  Western  Europe.  Fleeing  from  the  awful 
tempests  that  continued  for  centuries,  the  fugitives  came 
to  the  gates  of  Geneva.  Starving,  wounded,  bereft  of  home 
and  kindred,  they  were  warmly  welcomed  and  tenderly  cared 
for;  and  finding  a  home  here  they  blessed  the  city  of  their 
adoption  by  their  skill,  their  learning,  and  their  piety.  Many 
who  sought  here  a  refuge  returned  to  their  own  countries  to 
resist  the  tyranny  of  Rome.  John  Knox,  the  brave  Scotch 
reformer,  not  a  few  of  the  English  Puritans,  the  Protestants 
of  Holland,  and  the  Huguenots  of  France,  carried  from 
Geneva  the  torch  of  truth  to  lighten  the  darkness  of  their 
native  land. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  AND  SCANDINAVIA. 

IN  the  Netherlands  the  papal  tyranny  very  early  called 
forth  resolute  protest.  Seven  hundred  years  before  Luther's 
time,  the  Roman  pontiff  was  thus  fearlessly  impeached  by 
two  bishops,  who,  having  been  sent  on  an  embassy  to  Rome, 
had  learned  the  true  character  of  the  "  holy  see : "  "  God  has 
made  his 'queen  and  spouse,  the  church,  a  noble  and  ever- 
lasting provision  for  her  family,  with  a  dowry  that  is  neither 
fading  nor  corruptible,  and  given  her  an  eternal  crown  and 
scepter;  all  which  benefits,  you,  like  a  thief,  intercept.  You 
set  up  yourself  in  the  temple  as  God;  instead  of  a  shepherd, 
you  have  become  as  a  wolf  to  the  sheep.  You  would  have 
us  believe  you  supreme  bishop;  you  are  rather  a  tyrant.  .  . 
Whereas  you  ought  to  be  a  servant  of  servants,  as  you  call 
yourself,  you  intrigue  to  become  lord  of  lords.  ...  You 
bring  the  commands  of  God  into  contempt.  .  .  .  The 
Holy  Ghost  is  the  builder  of  all  churches  as  far  as  the  earth 
extends.  The  city  of  our  God,  of  which  we  are  citizens, 
reaches  to  all  parts  of  the  heavens;  and  it  is  greater  than 
the  city,  by  the  holy  prophets  named  Babylon,  which  pre- 
tends to  be  divine,  equals  herself  to  Heaven,  and  boasts  that 
her  wisdom  is  immortal;  and  finally,  though  without  reason, 
that  she  never  did  err,  nor  ever  can." 

Others  arose  from  century  to  century  to  echo  this  protest. 
And  those  early  teachers,  who,  traversing  different  lands, 
and  known  by  various  names,  bore  the  character  of  the 
Vaudois  missionaries,  and  spread  everywhere  the  knowledge 
of  the  gospel,  penetrated  to  the  Netherlands.  Their  doctrines 
spread  rapidly.  The  Waldensian  Bible  they  translated  in 

(237) 


238  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

verse  into  the  Dutch  language.  "There  is,"  they  said, 
"great  advantage  in  it;  no  jests,  no  fables,  no  trifles,  no 
deceits,  naught  but  words  -of  truth.  There  is,  indeed,  here 
and  there  a  hard  crust,  but  even  in  this  the  marrow  and 
sweetness  of  what  is  good  and  holy  may  easily  be  dis- 
covered." Thus  wrote  the  friends  of  the  ancient  faith,  in 
the  twelfth  century. 

Now  began  the  Romish  persecutions,  but  in  the  midst  of 
fagots  and  torture  the  believers  continued  to  multiply,  stead- 
fastly declaring  that  the  Bible  is  the  only  infallible  author- 
ity in  religion,  and  that  "no  man  should  be  coerced  to 
believe,  but  should  be  won  by  preaching." 

The  teachings  of  Luther  found  a  congenial  soil  in  the 
Netherlands,  and  earnest  and  faithful  men  arose  to  preach 
the  gospel.  From  one  of  the  provinces  of  Holland  came 
Menno  Simons.  Educated  a  Roman  Catholic,  and  ordained 
to  the  priesthood,  he  was  wholly  ignorant  of  the  Bible,  and 
he  would  not  read  it,  for  fear  of  being  beguiled  into  heresy. 
When  a  doubt  concerning  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation 
forced  itself  upon  him,  he  regarded  it  as  a  temptation  from 
Satan,  and  by  prayer  and  confession  sought  to  free  himself 
from  it;  but  in  vain.  By  mingling  in  scenes  of  dissipation 
.tie  endeavored  to  silence  the  accusing  voice  of  conscience; 
but  without  avail.  After  a  time  he  was  led  to  the  study  of 
the  New  Testament,  and  this  with  Luther's  writings  caused 
him  to  accept  the  reformed  faith.  He  soon  after  witnessed 
in  a  neighboring  village  the  beheading  of  a  man  who  was 
put  to  death  for  having  been  rebaptized.  This  led  him  to 
study  the  Bible  in  regard  to  infant  baptism.  He  could  find 
no  evidence  for  it  in  the  Scriptures,  but  saw  that  repentance 
and  faith  are  everywhere  required  as  the  condition  of  receiv- 
ing baptism. 

Menno  withdrew  from  the  Roman  Church,  and  devoted 
his  life  to  teaching  the  truths  which  he  had  received.  In 
both  Germany  and  the  Netherlands  a  class  of  fanatics  had 
risen,  advocating  absurd  and  seditious  doctrines,  outraging 


IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  AND  SCANDINA  VIA.    239 


order  and  decency,  and  proceeding  to  violence  and  insurrec- 
tion. Meiino  saw  the  horrible  results  to  which  these  move- 
ments would  inevitably  lead,  and  he  strenuously  opposed 
the  erroneous  teachings  and  wild  schemes  of  the  fanatics. 
There  were  many,  however,  who  had  been  misled  by  these 
fanatics  but  who  had  renounced  their  pernicious  doctrines; 
and  there  were  still  remaining  many  descendants  of  the 
ancient  Christians,  the  fruits  of  the  Waldensian  teaching. 
Among  these  classes  Menno  labored  with  great  zeal  and 
success. 

For  twenty-five  years  he  traveled,  with  his  wife  and  chil- 
dren, enduring  great  hardships  and  privations,  and  fre- 
quently in  peril  of  his  life.  He  traversed  the  Netherlands 
and  Northern  Germany,  laboring  chiefly  among  the  humbler 
classes,  but  exerting  a  widespread  influence.  Naturally 
eloquent,  though  possessing  a  limited  education,  he  was  a 
man  of  unwavering  integrity,  of  humble  spirit  and  gentle 
manners,  and  of  sincere  and  earnest  piety,  exemplifying  in 
his  own  life  the  precepts  which  he  taught,  and  he  com- 
manded the  confidence  of  the  people.  His  followers  were 
scattered  and  oppressed.  They  suffered  greatly  from  being 
confounded  with  the  fanatical  Munsterites.  Yet  great  num- 
bers were  converted  under  his  labors. 

Nowhere  were  the  reformed  doctrines  more  generally 
received  than  in  the  Netherlands.  In  few  countries  did 
their  adherents  endure  more  terrible  persecution.  In  Ger- 
many Charles  V.  had  banned  the  Reformation,  and  he  would 
gladly  have  brought  all  its  adherents  to  the  stake;  but  the 
princes  stood  up  as  a  barrier  against  his  tyranny.  In  the 
Netherlands  his  power  was  greater,  and  persecuting  edicts 
followed  each  other  in  quick  succession.  To  read  the  Bible, 
to  hear  or  preach  it  or  even  to  speak  concerning  it,  was  to 
incur  the  penalty  of  death  by  the  stake.  To  pray  to  God  in 
secret,  to  refrain  from  bowing  to  an  image,  or  to  sing  a  psalm, 
was  also  punishable  with  death.  Even  those  who  should 
abjure  their  errors,  were  condemned,  if  men,  to  die  by  the 


240  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


sword ;  if  women,  to  be  buried  alive.  Those  who  remained 
steadfast,  sometimes  suffered  the  same  punishment.  Thou- 
sands perished  under  the  reign  of  Charles  and  of  Philip  II 

At  one  time  a  whole  family  was  brought  before  the  inquis- 
itors, charged  with  remaining  away  from  mass,  and  worship- 
ing at  home.  On  his  examination  as  to  their  practices  in 
secret,  the  youngest  son  answered,  "  We  fall  on  our  knees, 
and  pray  that  God  will  enlighten  our  minds  and  pardon 
our  sins.  We  pray  for  our  sovereign,  that  his  reign  may  be 
prosperous  and  his  life  happy.  We  pray  for  our  magistrates, 
that  God  may  preserve  them."  Some  of  the  judges  were 
deeply  moved,  yet  the  father  and  one  of  his  sons  were 
condemned  to  the  stake. 

The  rage  of  the  persecutors  was  equaled  by  the  faith  of 
the  martyrs.  Not  only  men  but  delicate  women  and  young 
maidens  displayed  unflinching  courage.  "Wives  would 
take  their  stand  by  their  husband's  stake,  and  while  he  was 
enduring  the  fire  they  would  whisper  words  of  solace,  or 
sing  psalms  to  cheer  him."  "Young  maidens  would  lie 
down  in  their  living  grave  as  if  they  were  entering  into 
their  chamber  of  nightly  sleep ;  or  go  forth  to  the  scaffold 
and  the  fire  dressed  in  their  best  apparel,  as  if  they  were 
going  to  their  marriage." 

As  in  the  days  when  paganism  sought  to  destroy  the 
gospel,  "the  blood  of  the  Christians  was  seed."  Persecution 
served  to  increase  the  number  of  witnesses  for  the  truth. 
Year  after  year  the  monarch,  stung  to  madness  by  the  un- 
conquerable determination  of  the  people,  urged  on  his  cruel 
work;  but  in  vain.  Under  the  noble  William  of  Orange, 
the  Revolution  at  last  brought  to  Holland  freedom  to  wor- 
ship God. 

In  the  mountains  of  Piedmont,  on  the  plains  of  France 
and  the  shores  of  Holland,  the  progress  of  the  gospel  was 
marked  with  the  blood  of  its  disciples.  But  in  the  countries 
of  the  North  it  found  a  peaceful  entrance.  Students  at 
Wittenberg,  returning  to  their  homes,  carried  the  reformed 


IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  AND  SCANDTNA  VIA.    241 

faith  to  Scandinavia.  The  publication  of  Luther's  writings 
also  spread  the  light.  The  simple,  hardy  people  of  the 
North  turned  from  the  corruption,  the  pomp,  and  the  super- 
stitions of  Rome,  to  welcome  the  purity,  the  simplicity,  and 
the  life-giving  truths  of  the  Bible. 

Tausen,  "the  reformer  of  Denmark,"  was  a  peasant's  son, 
The  boy  early  gave  evidence  of  vigorous  intellect;  he  thirsted 
for  an  education ;  but  this  was  denied  him  by  the  circum- 
stances of  his  parents,  and  he  entered  a  cloister.  Here  the 
purity  of  his  life^  together  with  his  diligence  and  fidelity, 
won  the  favor  of  his  superior.  Examination  showed  him  to 
possess  talent  that  promised  at  some  future  day  good  service 
to  the  church.  It  was  determined  to  give  him  an  education 
at  some  one  of  the  universities  of  Germany  or  the  Nether- 
lands. The  young  student  was  granted  permission  to  choose 
a  school  for  himself,  with  the  one  proviso,  that  he  must  not 
go  to  Wittenberg.  The  scholar  of  the  church  was  not  to 
be  endangered  by  the  poison  of  heresy.  So  said  the  friars. 

Tausen  went  to  Cologne,  which  was  then  as  now  one  of 
the  strongholds  of  Romanism.  Here  he  soon  became  dis- 
gusted with  the  mysticisms  of  the  schoolmen.  About  the 
same  time  he'  obtained  Luther's  writings.  He  read  them 
with  wonder  and  delight,  and  greatly  desired  to  enjoy  the 
personal  instruction  of  the  reformer.  But  to  do  so  he  must 
risk  giving  offense  to  his  monastic  superior,  and  forfeiting 
his  support.  His  decision  was  soon  made,  and  erelong  he 
was  enrolled  as  a  student  at  Wittenberg. 

On  returning  to  Denmark  he  again  repaired  to  his  cloister. 
No  one  as  yet  suspected  him  of  Lutheranism;  he  did  not 
reveal  his  secret,  but  endeavored,  without  exciting  the  preju- 
dices of  his  companions,  to  lead  them  to  a  purer  faith  and  a 
holier  life.  He  opened  the  Bible,  and  explained  its  true 
meaning,  and  at  last  preached  Christ  to  them  as  the  sinner's 
righteousness  and  his  only  hope  of  salvation.  Great  was  the 
•wrath  of  the  prior,  who  had  built  high  hopes  upon  him  as  a 
valiant  defender  of  Rome.  He  was  at  once  removed  from 


242  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


his  own  monastery  to  another,  and  confined  to  his  cell,  under 
strict  supervision. 

To  the  terror  of  his  new  guardians,  several  of  the  monks 
soon  declared  themselves  converts  to  Protestantism.  Through 
the  bars  of  his  cell,  Tausen  had  communicated  to  his  com- 
panions a  knowledge  of  the  truth.  Had  those  Danish 
fathers  been  skilled  in  the  church's  plan  of  dealing  with 
heresy,  Tausen's  voice  would  never  again  have  been  heard; 
but  instead  of  consigning  him  to  a  tomb  in  some  under- 
ground dungeon,  they  expelled  him  from  the  monastery. 
Now  they  were  powerless.  A  royal  edict,  just  issued,  offered 
protection  to  the  teachers  of  the  new  doctrine.  Tausen 
began  to  preach.  The  churches  were  opened  to  him,  and  the 
people  thronged  to  listen.  Others  also  were  preaching  the 
Word  of  God.  The  New  Testament,  translated  into  the 
Danish  tongue,  was  widely  circulated.  The  efforts  made  by 
papists  to  overthrow  the  work  resulted  in  extending  it,  and 
erelong  Denmark  declared  its  acceptance  of  the  reformed 
faith. 

In  Sweden,  also,  young  men  who  had  drunk  from  the  well 
of  Wittenberg  carried  the  water  of  life  to  thei  r  countrymen. 
Two  of  the  leaders  in  the  Swedish  Reformation,  Olaf  and 
Laurentius  Petri,  the  sons  of  a  blacksmith  of  Orebro,  studied 
under  Luther  and  Melancthon,  and  the  truths  which  they 
thus  learned  they  were  diligent  to  teach.  Like*  the  great 
reformer,  Olaf  aroused  the  people  by  his  zeal  and  elo- 
quence, while  Laurentius,  like  Melancthon,  was  learned, 
thoughtful,  and  calm.  Both  were  men  of  ardent  piety,  of 
high  theological  attainments,  and  of  unflinching  courage  in 
advancing  the  truth.  Papist  opposition  was  not  lacking. 
The  Catholic  priests  stirred  up  the  ignorant  and  superstitious 
people.  Olaf  Petri  was  often  assailed  by  the. mob,  and  upon 
several  occasions  barely  escaped  with  his  life.  These  reform- 
ers were,  however,  favored  and  protected  by  the  king.  Un- 
der the  rule  of  the  Romish  Church,  the  people  were  sunken 
in  poverty,  and  ground  down  by  oppression.  They  were 


IN  THE  NETHERLANDS  AND  SOANDINA  VIA.    243 


destitute  of  the  Scriptures,  and  having  a  religion  of  mere 
signs  and  ceremonies,  which  conveyed  no  light  to  the  mind, 
they  were  returning  to  the  superstitious  beliefs  and  pagan 
practices  of  their  heathen  ancestors.  The  nation  was  divided 
into  contending  factions  whose  perpetual  strife  increased  the 
misery  of  all.  The  king  determined  upon  a  reformation  in 
the  State  and  the  church,  and  he  welcomed  these  able  assist- 
ants in  the  battle  against  Rome. 

In  the  presence  of  the  monarch  and  the  leading  men  of 
Sweden,  Olaf  Petri  with  great'  ability  defended  the  doc- 
trines of  the  reformed  faith  against  the  Romish  champions. 
He  declared  that  the  teachings  of  the  Fathers  are  to  be 
received  only  when  in  accordance  with  the  Scriptures;  that 
the  essential  doctrines  of  the  faith  are  presented  in  the  Bible 
in  a  clear  and  simple  manner,  so  that  all  men  may  under- 
stand them.  Christ  said,  "  My  doctrine  is  not  mine,  but  His 
that  sent  me," l  and  Paul  declared  that  should  he  preach 
any  other  gospel  than  that  which  he  had  received,  he  would 
be  accursed.2  "  How,  then,"  said  the  reformer,  "  shall  others 
presume  to  enact  dogmas  at  their  pleasure,  and  impose  them 
as  things  necessary  to  salvation?"  He  showed  that  the 
decrees  of  the  church  are  of  no  authority  when  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  commands  of  God,  and  maintained  the  great 
Protestant  principle,  that  "  the  Bible  and  the  Bible  only,"  is 
the  rule  of  faith  and  practice. 

This  contest,  though  conducted  upon  a  stage  compara- 
tively obscure,  serves  to  "show  us  the  kind  of  men  that 
formed  the  rank  and  file  of  the  army  of  the  reformers. 
When  we  confine  our  attention  to  such  brilliant  centers  as 
Wittenberg  and  Zurich,  and  to  such  illustrious  names  as 
those  of  Luther  and  Melancthon,  of  Zwingle  and  (Ecolampa- 
dius,  we  are  apt  to  be  told  that  these  were  the  leaders  of  the 
movement,  but  the  subordinates  were  not  like  them.  Well, 
we  turn  to  the  obscure  theater  of  Sweden,  and  the  humble 
names  of  Olaf  and  Laurentius  Petri — from  the  masters  to  the 
1  John  7: 16.  'Gal.  1  8. 


244  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

disciples — what  do  we  find?  Not  illiterate,  sectarian,  noisy 
controversialists — far  from  it ;  we  see  men  who  had  studied 
the  Word  of  God,  and  who  knew  well  how  to  wield  the  weap- 
ons with  which  the  armory  of  the  Bible  supplied  them; 
scholars  and  theologians,  who  won  an  easy  victory  over  the 
sophists  of  the  schools,  and  the  dignitaries  of  Rome." 

As  the  result  of  this  disputation,  the  king  of  Sweden 
accepted  the  Protestant  faith,  and  not  long  afterward  the 
national  assembly  declared  in  its  favor.  The  New  Testa- 
ment had  been  translated  by  Olaf  Petri  into  the  Swedish 
language,  and  at  the  desire  of  the  king  the  two  brothers 
undertook  the  translation  of  the  whole  Bible.  Thus  for  the 
first  time  the  people  of  Sweden  received  the  Word  of  God 
in  their  native  tongue.  It  was  ordered  by  the  Diet  that 
throughout  the  kingdom  ministers  should  explain  the  Script- 
ures, and  that  the  children  in  the  schools  should  be  taught 
to  read  the  Bible. 

Steadily  and  surely  the  darkness  of  ignorance  and  super- 
stition was  dispelled  by  the  blessed  light  of  the  gospel. 
Freed  from  Romish  oppression,  the  nation  attained  to 
strength  and  greatness  it  had  never  reached  before.  Swe- 
den became  one  of  the  bulwarks  of  Protestantism.  A  cent- 
ury later,  at  a  time  of  sorest  peril,  this  small  and  hitherto 
feeble  nation — the  only  one  in  Europe  that  dared  lend  a 
helping  hand — came  to  the  deliverance  of  Germany  in  the 
terrible  struggles  of  the  thirty  years'  war.  All  Northern 
Europe  seemed  about  to  be  brought  again  under  the  tyr- 
anny of  Rome.  It  was  the  armies  of  Sweden  that  enabled 
Germany  to  turn  the  tide  of  popish  success,  to  win  toleration 
for  the  Protestants — Calvinists  as  well  as  Lutherans — and  to 
restore  liberty  of  conscience  to  those  countries  that  had 
accepted  the  Reformation. 


.uk'r:ive.l  Kxinvssly  f..i  Great  Controversy. 


1  V  \  DALK. 
L.\  II  M  KK. 
\\'  lah  LBT. 


K  N  « i  X  . 

RIDLEY. 

CKANM  KK. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


LATER  ENGLISH   REFORMERS. 

WHILE  Luther  was  opening  a  closed  Bible  to  the  people 
of  Germany,  Tyndale  was  impelled  by  the  Spirit  of  God  to 
do  the  same  for  England.  Wycliffe's  Bible  had  been  trans- 
lated from  the  Latin  text,  which  contained  many  errors.  It 
had  never  been  printed,  and  the  cost  of  manuscript  copies 
was  so  great  that  few  but  wealthy  men  or  nobles  could  pro- 
cure it,  and,  furthermore,  being  strictly  proscribed  by  the 
church,  it  had  had  a  comparatively  narrow  circulation.  In 
1516,  a  year  before  the  appearance  of  Luther's  theses,  Erasmus 
had  published  his  Greek  and  Latin  version  of  the  New 
Testament.  Now  for  the  first  time  the  Word  of  God  was 
printed  in  the  original  tongue.  In  this  work  many  errors 
of  former  versions  were  corrected,  and  the  sense  was  more 
clearly  rendered.  It  led  many  among  the  educated  classes 
to  a  better  knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  gave  a  new  impetus 
to  the  work  of  reform.  But  the  common  people  were  still, 
to  a  great  extent,  debarred  from  God's  Word.  Tyndale  was 
to  complete  the  work  of  Wycliffe  in  giving  the  Bible  to  his 
countrymen. 

A  diligent  student  and  an  earnest  seeker  for  truth,  he  had 
received  the  gospel  from  the  Greek  Testament  of  Erasmus. 
He  fearlessly  preached  his  convictions,  urging  that  all  doc-, 
trines  be  tested  by  the  Scriptures.  To  the  papist  claim  that 
the  church  had  given  the  Bible,  and  the  church  alone  could 
explain  it,  Tyndale  responded,  "  Do  you  know  who  taught 
the  eagles  to  find  their  prey  ?  That  same  God  teaches  his 
hungry  children  to  find  their  Father  in  his  Word.  Far  from 
having  given  us  the  Scriptures,  it  is  you  who  have  hidden 

19  (246) 


246  THE    (IK EAT  CONTROVERSY. 

tin-in  from  us;  it  is  you  who  bum  those  who  teach  them; 
and  if  you  could,  you  would  burn  the  Scriptures  them- 
selves." 

Tyndale's  preaching  excited  great  interest ;  many  accepted 
the  truth.  But  the  priests  were  on  the  alert,  and  no  sooner 
had  he  left  the  field  than  they  by  their  threats  and  misrep- 
resentations endeavored  to  destroy  his  wrork.  Too  often  they 
succeeded.  "Alas!"  he  exclaimed,  "what  is  to  be  done? 
While  I  am  sowing  in  one  place,  the  enemy  ravages  the 
field  I  have  just  left.  I  cannot  be  everywhere.  Oh!  if 
Christians  possessed  the  Holy  Scriptures  in  their  own  tongue, 
they  could  of  themselves  withstand  these  sophists.  With- 
out the  Bible  it  is  impossible  to  establish  the  laity  in  the 
truth." 

A  new  purpose  now  took  possession  of  his  mind.  "It  was 
in  the  language  of  Israel,"  said  he,  "  that  the  psalms  were 
sung  in  the  temple  of  Jehovah;  and  shall  not  the  gospel 
speak  the  language  of  England  among  us?  ...  Ought 
the  church  to  have  less  light  at  noonday  than  at  the  dawn  ? 
.  .  .  Christians  must  read  the  New  Testament  in  their 
mother-tongue."  The  doctors  and  teachers  of  the  church 
disagreed  among  themselves.  Only  by  the  Bible  could  men 
arrive  at  the  truth.  "One  holdeth  this  doctrine,  another 
that.  .  .  .  Now  each  of  these  authors  contradicts  the 
other.  How  then  can  we  distinguish  him  who  says  right 
from  him  who  says  wrong?  .  .  .  How?  .  .  .  Verily, 
by  God's  Word." 

It  was  not  long  after  that  a  learned  Catholic  doctor, 
engaging  in  controversy  with  him,  exclaimed,  "It  were  bet- 
ter for  us  to  be  without  God's  law  than  without  the  pope's." 
Tyndale  replied,  "I  defy  the  pope  and  all  his  laws;  and  if 
God  spafe  my  life,  ere  many  years  I  will  cause  a  boy  who 
driveth  the  plow  to  know  more  of  the  Scriptures  tlian  you  do." 

The  purpose  which  he  had  begun  to  cherish,  of  giving  to 
the  people  the  New-Testament  Scriptures  in  their  own  lan- 
guage, was  now  confirmed,  and  he  immediately  applied  him- 


LATER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  247 


self  to  the  work.  Driven  from  his  home  by  persecution,  he 
went  to  London,  and  there  for  a  time  pursued  his  labors 
undisturbed.  But  again  the  violence  of  the  papists  forced 
him  to  flee.  All  England  seemed  closed  against  him,  and 
he  resolved  to  seek  shelter  in  Germany.  Here  he  began  the 
printing  of  the  English  New  Testament.  Twice  the  work 
was  stopped;  but  when  forbidden  tc  print  in  one  city,  he 
went  to  another.  At  last  he  made  his  way  to  Worms,  where, 
a  few  years  before,  Luther  had  defended  the  gospel  before 
the  Diet.  In  that  ancient  city  were  many  friends  of  the 
Reformation,  and  Tyndale  there  prosecuted  his  work  with- 
out further  hindrance.  Three  thousand  copies  of  the  New 
Testament  were  soon  finished,  and  another  edition  followed 
in  the  same  year. 

With  great  earnestness  and  perseverance  he  continued  his 
labors.  Notwithstanding  the  English  authorities  had  guarded 
their  ports  with  the  strictest  vigilance,  the  Word  of  God 
was  in  various  ways  secretly  conveyed  to  London,  and  thence 
circulated  throughout  the  country.  The  papists  attempted 
to  suppress  the  truth,  but  in  vain.  The  bishop  or  Durham 
at  one  time  bought  of  a  bookseller  who  was  a  iriend  of 
Tyndale,  his  whole  stock  of  Bibles,  for  the  purpose  01  destroy- 
ing them,  supposing  that  this  would  greatly  hinder  the 
work.  But,  on  the  contrary,  the  money  thus  furnished,  pur- 
chased material  for  a  new  and  better  edition,  which,  but  for 
this,  could  not  have  been  published.  When  Tyndale  was 
afterward  made  a  prisoner,  his  liberty  was  offered  him  on 
condition  that  he  would  reveal  the  names  of  those  who  had 
helped  him  meet  the  expense  of  printing  his  Bibles.  He 
replied  that  the  bishop  of  Durham  had  done  more  than 
any  other  person;  for  by  paying  a  large  price  for  the  books 
left  on  hand,  he  had  enabled  him  to  go  on  with  good  courage. 

Tyndale  was  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  his  enemies,  and 
at  one  time  suffered  imprisonment  for  many  months.  He 
finally  witnessed  for  his  faith  by  a  martyr's  death;  but  the 
weapons  which  he  prepared  have  enabled  other  soldiers  to  do 
battle  through  all  the  centuries  even  to  our  time. 


248  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Latimer  maintained  from  the  pulpit  that  the  Bible  ought 
to  be  read  in  the  language  of  the  people.  "The  Author  of 
Holy  Scripture/'  said  he,  "is  God  himself,  and  this  Scripture 
partakes  of  the  might  and  eternity  of  its  Author.  There  is 
neither  king  nor  emperor  that  is  not  bound  to  obey  it.  Let 
us  beware  of  those  by-paths  of  human  tradition,  full  of 
stones,  brambles,  and  uprooted  trees.  Let  us  follow  the 
straight  road  of  the  Word.  It  does  not  concern  us  what  the 
Fathers  have  done,  but  rather  what  they  ought  to  have 
done." 

Barnes  and  Frith,  the  faithful  friends  of  Tyndale,  arose  to 
defend  the  truth.  The  Bidleys  and  Cranmer  followed. 
These  leaders  in  the  English  Reformation  were  men  of 
learning,  and  most  of  them  had  been  highly  esteemed  for 
zeal  or  piety  in  the  Romish  communion.  Their  opposition 
to  the  papacy  was  the  result  of  their  knowledge  of  the  errors 
of  the  "  holy  see."  Their  acquaintance  with  the  mysteries  of 
Babylon,  gave  greater  power  to  their  testimonies  against  her. 

"Do  you  know,"  said  Latimer,  "who  is  the  most  diligent 
bishop  in  England?  I  see  you  listening  and  hearkening 
that  I  should  name  him.  I  will  tell  you.  It  is  the  devil. 
He  is  never  out  of  his  diocese;  you  shall  never  find  him 
idle.  Call  for  him  when  you  will,  he  is  ever  at  home,  he  is 
ever  at  the  plow.  You  shall  never  find  him  remiss,  I  Avar- 
rant  you.  Where,  the  devil  is  resident,  there  away  with 
books,  and  up  with  candles;  away  with  Bibles,  and  up  with 
beads ;  away  with  the  light  of  the  gospel,  and  up  with  the 
light  of  wax  tapers,  yea,  at  noonday;  down  with  Christ's 
cross,  up  with  the  purgatory  pick-purse;  away  with  clothing 
the  naked,  the  poor,  the  impotent;  up  with  the  decking  of 
images  and  the  gay  garnishing  of  stones  and  stocks;  down 
with  God  and  his  most  holy  Word;  up  with  traditions, 
human  councils,  and  a  blinded  pope.  Oh  that  our  prelates 
would  be  as  diligent  to  sow  the  corn  of  good  doctrine  as 
Satan  is  to  sow  cockle  and  darnel!'7 

The  grand  principle  maintained  by  these  reformers — the 


LA  TER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  249 

same  that  had  been  held  by  the  Waldenses,  by  Wycliffe,  by 
John  Huss,  by  Luther,  Zwingle,  and  those  who  united  with 
them — was  the  infallible  authority  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
as  a  rule  of  faith  and  practice,  They  denied  the  right  of 
popes,  councils,  Fathers,  and  kings,  to  control  the  conscience 
in  matters  of  religion.  The  Bible  was  their  authority,  and 
by  its  teaching  they  tested  all  doctrines  and  all  claims. 

Faith  in  God  and  his  Word  sustained  these  holy  men  as 
they  yielded  up  their  lives  at  the  stake.  "Be  of  good  com- 
fort," exclaimed  Latimer  to  his  fellow-martyr  as  the  flames 
were  about  to  silence  their  voices,  "  we  shall  this  day  light 
such  a  candle  in  England  as,  I  trust,  by  God's  grace  shall 
never  be  put  out." 

In  Scotland  the  seeds  of  truth  scattered  by  Columba  ancf 
his  co-laborers  had  never  been  wholly  destroyed.  For  hun- 
dreds of  years  after  the  churches  of  England  submitted  to 
Rome,  those  of  Scotland  maintained  their  freedom.  In  the 
twelfth  century,  however,  popery  became  established  here, 
and  in  no  country  did  it  exercise  a  more  absolute  sway. 
Nowhere  was  the  darkness  deeper.  Still  there  came  rays  of 
light  to  pierce  the  gloom,  and  give  promise  of  the  coming 
day.  The  Lollards,  corning  from  England  with  the  Bible 
and  the  teachings  of  Wycliffe,  did  much  to  preserve  the 
knowledge  of  the  gospel,  and  every  century  had  its  witnesses 
and  martyrs. 

With  the  opening  of  the  Great  Reformation  came  the 
writings  of  Luther,  and  then  Tyndale's  English  New  Testa- 
ment. Unnoticed  by  the  hierarchy,  these  messengers  silently 
traversed  the  mountains  and  valleys,  kindling  into  new  life 
tKe  torch  of  truth  so  nearly  extinguished  in  Scotland,  and 
undoing  the  work  which  Rome  for  four  centuries  of  oppres- 
sion had  done. 

.  Then  the  blood  of  martyrs  gave  fresh  impetus  to  the 
movement.  The  papist  leaders,  suddenly  awakening  to  the 
danger  that  threatened  their  cause,  brought  to  the  stake 
some  of  the  noblest  and  most  honored  of  the  sons  of  Scotland. 


250  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


They  did  but  erect  a  pulpit,  from  which  the  words  of  these 
dying  witnesses  were  heard  throughout  the  land,  thrilling 
the  souls  of  the  people  with  an  undying  purpose  to  cast  off' 
the  shackles  of  Rome. 

Hamilton  and  Wishart,  princely  in  character  as  in  birth, 
with  a  long  line  of  humbler  disciples,  yielded  up  their  lives 
at  the  stake.  But  from  the  burning  pile  of  Wishart  there 
came  one  whom  the  flames  were  not  to  silence, — one  who 
under  God  was  to  strike  the  death-knell  of  popery  in  Scot- 
land. 

John  Knox  had  turned  away  from  the  traditions  and 
mysticisms  of  the  church,  to  feed  upon  the  truths  of  God's 
Word,  and  the  teaching  of  Wishart  had  confirmed  his 
determination  to  forsake  the  communion  of  Rome,  and  join 
himself  to  the  persecuted  reformers. 

Urged  by  his  companions  to  take  the  office  of  preacher, 
he  shrunk  with  trembling  from  its  responsibility,  and  it  was 
only  after  days  of  seclusion  and  painful  conflict  with  himself 
that  he  consented.  But  having  once  accepted  the  position, 
he  pressed  forward  with  inflexible  determination  and  un- 
daunted courage  as  long  as  life  continued.  This  true-hearted 
reformer  feared  not  the  face  of  man.  The  fires  of  martyr- 
dom, blazing  around  him,  served  only  to  quicken  his  zeal  to 
greater  intensity.  With  the  tyrant's  ax  held  menacingly 
over  his  head,  he  stood  his  ground,  striking  sturdy  blows 
on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left  to  demolish  idolatry. 

When  brought  face  to  face  with  the  queen  of  Scotland,  in 
whose  presence  the  zeal  of  many  a  leader  of  the  Protestants 
had  abated,  John  Knox  bore  unswerving  witness  for  the 
truth.  He  was  not  to  be  won  by  caresses;  he  quailed  not 
before  threats.  The  queen  charged  him  with  heresy.  He 
had  taught  the  people  to  receive  a  religion  prohibited  by 
the  State,  she  declared,  and  had  thus  transgressed  God's 
command  enjoining  subjects  to  obey  their  princes.  Knox 
answered  firmly: — 

"As   right    religion   received    neither   its   origin    nor  its 


LATER  KXdLIXH  REFORMERS.  251 


authority  from  princes,  but  from  the  eternal  God  alone,  so 
are  not  subjects  bound  to  frame  their  religion  according  to 
the  tastes  of  their  princes.  For  oft  it  is  that  princes,  of  all 
others,  are  the  most  ignorant  of  God's  true  religion.  If  all 
the  seed  of  Abraham  had  been  of  the  religion  of  Pharaoh, 
whose  subjects  they  long  were,  I  pray  you,  madam,  what 
religion  would  there  have  been  in  the  world?  And  if  all  in 
the  days  of  the  apostles  had  been  of  the  religion  of  the 
Roman  emperors,  I  pray  you,  madam,  what  religion  would 
there  have  been  now  upon  the  earth?  .  .  .  And  so, 
madam,  you  may  perceive  that  subjects  are  not  bound  to 
the  religion  of  their  princes,  although  they  are  commanded 
to  give  them  reverence." 

Said  Mary,  "  You  interpret  the  Scripture  in  one  way,  and* 
they  [the  Romish  teachers]  interpret  it  in  another;  whom 
shall  I  believe,  and  who  shall  be  judge?" 

"You  shall  believe  God,  wrho  plainly  speaketh  in  his 
Word,"  answered  the  reformer;  "and  farther  than  the  Word 
teaches  you,  ye  shall  believe  neither  the  one  nor  the  other. 
The  Word  of  God  is  plain  in  itself,  and  if  in  any  one  place 
there  be  obscurity,  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  never  is  contrary  to 
himself,  explains  the  same  more  clearly  in  other  places,  so 
that  there  can  remain  no  doubt  but  unto  such  as  are  obsti- 
nately ignorant."  Such  were  the  truths  that  the  fearless 
reformer,  at  the  peril  of  his  life,  spoke  in  the  ear  of  royalty. 
With  the  same  undaunted  courage  he  kept  to  his  purpose, 
praying  and  fighting  the  battles  of  the  Lord,  until  Scotland 
was  free  from  popery. 

In  England  the  establishment  of  Protestantism  as  the 
national  religion  diminished,  but  did  not  wholly  stop  perse- 
cution. While  many  of  the  doctrines  of  Rome  had  been 
renounced,  not  a  few  of  its  forms  were  retained.  The  su- 
premacy of  the  pope  was  rejected,  but  in  his  place  the  mon- 
arch was.  enthroned  as  the  head  of  the  church.  In  the 
service  of  the  church  there  was  still  a  wide  departure  from 
the  purity  and  simplicity  of  the  gospel.  The  great  principle 


252  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  religious  toleration  was  not  as  yet  understood.  Though 
the  horrible  cruelties  which  Rome  employed  against  heresy 
were  resorted  to  but  rarely  by  Protestant  rulers,  yet  the  right 
of  every  man  to  worship  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  his 
own  conscience  was  not  acknowledged.  All  were  required 
to  accept  the  doctrines  and  observe  the  forms  of  worship 
prescribed  by  the  established  church.  Dissenters  suffered 
persecution,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  for  hundreds  of  years. 

In  the  seventeenth  century  thousands  of  pastors  were 
expelled  from,  their  positions.  The  people  were  forbidden, 
on  pain  of  heavy  fines,  imprisonment,  and  banishment,  to 
attend  any  religious  meetings  except  such  as  were  sanc- 
tioned by  the  church.  Those  faithful  souls  who  could  not 
refrain  from  gathering  to  worship  God.  were  compelled  to 
meet  in  dark  alleys,  in  obscure  garrets,  and,  at  some  seasons, 
in  the  woods  at  midnight.  In  the  sheltering  depths  of  the 
forest,  a  temple  of  God's  own  building,  those  scattered  and 
persecuted  children  of  the  Lord  assembled  to  pour  out  their 
souls  in  prayer  and  praise.  But  despite  all  their  precautions, 
many  suffered  for  their  faith.  The  jails  were  crowded.  Fam- 
ilies were  broken  up.  Many  were  banished  to  foreign  lands. 
Yet  God  was  with  his  people,  and  persecution  could  not  pre- 
vail to  silence  their  testimony.  Many  were  driven  across 
the  ocean  to  America,  and  here  laid  the  foundations  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty  which  have  been  the  bulwark 
and  glory  of  this  country. 

Again,  as  in  apostolic  days,  persecution  turned  out  to  the 
furtherance  of  the  gospel.  In  a  loathsome  dungeon  crowded 
with  profligates  and  felons,  John  Bunyan  breathed  the  very 
atmosphere  of  Heaven,  and  there  he  wrote  his  wonderful 
allegory  of  the  pilgrim's  journey  from  the  land  of  destruc- 
tion to  the  celestial  city.  For  two  hundred  years  that  voice 
from  Bedford  jail  has  spoken  with  thrilling  power  to  the 
hearts  of  men.  Bunyan's  "Pilgrim's  Progress"  and  "Grace 
Abounding  to  the  Chief  of  Sinners"  have  guided  many  feet 
into  the  path  of  life. 


uJ  Kxi>rc.-»ly  fur  Great  Controversy. 

BAXTER. 
MILLEK. 


Copyrighted 


WESLEY. 


BUNYAN. 

"VVnTTEFIELD. 


LATER  EtfGLISB  REFORMERS.  253 

Baxter,  Flavel,  Alleine,  and  othor  men  of  talent,  educa- 
tion, and  deep  Christian  experience,  stood  up  in  valiant  de- 
fense of  the  faith  which  was  once  delivered  to  the  saints. 
The  work  accomplished  by  these  men,  proscribed  and  out- 
lawed by  the  rulers  of  this  world,  can  never  perish.  Flavel 's 
"Fountain  of  Life"  and  "Method  of  Grace"  have  taught 
thousands  how  to  commit  the  keeping  of  their  souls  to 
Christ.  Baxter's  "  Reformed  Pastor "  has  proved  a  blessing 
to  many  who  desire  a  revival  of  the  work  of  God,  and  his 
"Saint's  Everlasting  Rest"  has  done  its  work  in  leading  souls 
to  the  "rest  that  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God." 

A  hundred  years  later,  in  a  day  of  great  spiritual  dark- 
ness, Whitefield  and  the  Wesley  s  appeared  as  light-bearers 
for  God.  Under  the  rule  of  the  established  church,  the  peo- 
ple of  England  had  lapsed  into  a  state  of  religious  declen- 
sion hardly  to  be  distinguished  from  heathenism.  Natural 
religion  was  the  favorite  study  of  the  clergy,  and  included 
most  of  their  theology.  The  higher  classes  sneered  at  piety, 
and  prided  themselves  on  being  above  what  they  called  its 
fanaticism.  The  lower  classes  were  grossly  ignorant,  and 
abandoned  to  vice,  while  the  church  had  no  courage  or  faith 
to  any  longer  support  the  downfallen  cause  of  truth. 

The  great  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith,  so  clearly 
taught  by  Luther,  had  been  almost  wholly  lost  sight  of,  and 
the  Romish  principle  of  trusting  to  good  works  for  salvation, 
had  taken  its  place.  Whitefield  and  the  Wesleys,  who  were 
members  of  the  established  church,  were  sincere  seekers  for 
the  favor  of  God,  and  this  they  had  been  taught  was  to  be 
secured  by  a  virtuous  life  and  an  observance  of  the  ordi- 
nances of  religion. 

When  Charles  Wesley  at  one  time  fell  ill,  and  anticipated 
that  death  was  approaching,  he  was  asked  upon  what  lie 
rested  his  hope  of  eternal  life.  His  answer  was,  "  I  have  used 
my  best  endeavors  to  serve  God."  As  the  friend  who  had 
put  the  question  seemed  not  to  be  fully  satisfied  with  his 
answer,  Wesley  thought,  "What!  are  not  my  endeavors  a 


254  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


sufficient  ground  of  hope?  Would  he  rob  me  of  my  endeav- 
ors? I  have  nothing  else  to  trust  to."  Such  was  the  dense 
darkness  that  had  settled  down  on  the  church,  hiding  the 
atonement,  robbing  Christ  of  his  glory,  and  turning  the 
minds  of  men  from  their  only  hope  of  salvation, — the  blood 
of  the  crucified  Redeemer. 

Wesley  and  his  associates  were  led  to  see  that  true  religion 
is  seated  in  the  heart,  and  that  God's  law  extends  to  the 
thoughts  as  well  as  to  the  words  and  actions.  Convinced  of 
the  necessity  of  holiness  of  heart,  as  well  as  correctness  of 
outward  deportment,  they  set  out  in  earnest  upon  a  new  life. 
By  the  most  diligent  and  prayerful  efforts  they  endeavored 
to  subdue  the  evils  of  the  natural  heart.  They  lived  a  life 
of  self-denial,  charity,  and  humiliation,  observing  with  great 
rigor  and  exactness  every  measure  which  they  thought 
could  be  helpful  to  them  in  obtaining  what  they  most  de- 
sired,— that  holiness  which  could  secure  the  favor  of  God. 
But  they  did  not  obtain  the  object  which  they  sought.  In 
vain  were  their  endeavors  to  free  themselves  from  the  con- 
demnation of  sin  or  to  break  its  power.  It  was  the  same 
struggle  which  Luther  experienced  in  his  cell  at  Erfurt.  It 
was  the  same  question  which  had  tortured  his  soul, — "  How 
should  man  be  just  before  God?" 

The  fires  of  divine  truth,  well-nigh  extinguished  upon 
the  altars  of  Protestantism,  were  to  be  rekindled  from  the 
ancient  torch  handed  down  the  ages  by  the  Bohemian  Chris- 
tians. After  the  Reformation,  Protestantism  in  Bohemia  had 
been  trampled  out  by  the  hordes  of  Rome.  All  who  refused 
to  renounce  the  truth  were  forced  to  flee.  Some  of  these, 
finding  refuge  in  Saxony,  there  maintained  the  ancient  faith. 
It  was  from  the  descendants  of  these  Christians  that  light 
came  to  Wesley  and  his  associates. 

John  and  Charles  Wesley,  after  being  ordained  to  the 
ministry,  were  sent  on  a  mission  to  America.  On  board  the 
ship  was  a  company  of  Moravians.  Violent  storms  were 
encountered  on  the  passage,  and  John  Wesley,  brought  face 

l- lob  9:  2. 


LATER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  255 


to  face  with  death,  felt  that  he  had  not  the  assurance  of 
peace  with  God.  But  the  Germans,  on  the  contrary,  mani- 
fested a  calmness  and  trust  to  which  he  was  a  stranger. 

"  I  had  long  before,"  he  says, "  observed  the  great  seriousness 
of  their  behavior.  Of  their  humility  they  had  given  con- 
tinual proof,  by  performing  those  servile  offices  for  the  other 
passengers  which  none  of  the  English  would  undertake;  for 
which  they  desired  and  would  receive  no  pay,  saying,  it 
was  good  for  their  proud  hearts,  and  their  loving  Saviour 
had  done  more  for  them.  And  every  day  had  given  them 
occasion  of  showing  a  meekness  which  no  injury  could 
move.  If  they  were  pushed,  struck,  or  thrown  down,  they 
rose  again  and  went  away;  but  no  complaint  was  found  in 
their  mouth.  There  was  now  an  opportunity  of  trying 
whether  they  were  delivered  from  the  spirit  of  fear,  as  well 
as  from  that  *of  pride,  anger,  and  revenge.  In  the  midst  of 
the  psalm  wherewith  their  service  began,  the  sea  broke  over, 
split  the  mainsail  in  pieces,  covered  the  ship,  and  poured 
in  between  the  deck  as  if  the  great  deep  had  already 
swallowed  us  up.  A  terrible  screaming  began  among  the 
English.  The  Germans  calmly  sung  on.  I  asked  one  of 
them  afterward,  'Were  you  not  afraid ?'  He  answered,  'I 
thank  God,  no/  I  asked,  'But  were  not  your  women  and 
children  afraid?'  He  replied  mildly,  'No;  our  women  and 
children  are  not  afraid  to  die.'" 

Upon  arriving  in  Savannah,  Wesley  for  a  short  time  abode 
with  the  Moravians,  and  was  deeply  impressed"  with  their 
Christian  deportment.  Of  one  of  their  religious  services, 
in  striking  contrast  to  the  lifeless  formalism  of  the  Church 
of  England,  he  wrote:  "  The  great  simplicity  as  well  as  solem- 
nity of  the  whole  almost  made  me  forget  the  seventeen 
hundred  years  between,  and  imagine  myself  in  one  of  those 
assemblies  where  form  and  state  were  not;  but  Paul,  the 
tent-maker,  or  Peter,  the  fisherman,  presided ;  yet  with  the 
demonstration  of  the  Spirit  and  of  power." 

On  his  return  to  England,  Wesley,  under  the  instruction 


256  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  a  Moravian  preacher,  arrived  at  a  clearer  understanding 
of  Bible  faith.  He  was  convinced  that  he  must  renounce  all 
dependence  upon  his  own  works  for  salvation,  and  must 
trust  wholly  to  the  "Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin 
of  the  world."  At  a  meeting  of  the  Moravian  society  in 
London,  a  statement  was  read  from  Luther,  describing  the 
change  which  the  Spirit  of  God  works  in  the  heart  of  the 
believer.  As  Wesley  listened,  faith  was  kindled  in  his  soul. 
"  I  felt  my  heart  strangely  warmed,"  he  says.  "  I  felt  I  did 
trust  in  Christ,  Christ  alone,  for  salvation;  and  an  assurance 
was  given  me  that  he  had  taken  away  my  sins,  even  mine, 
and  saved  me  from  the  law  of  sin  and  death." 

Through  long  years  of  wearisome  and  comfortless  striving, 
— years  of  rigorous  self-denial,  of  reproach  and  humiliation, 
— Wesley  had  steadfastly  adhered  to  his  one  purpose  of 
seeking  God.  Now  he  had  found  him ;  and  he  found  that 
the  grace  which  he  had  toiled  to  win  by  prayers  and  fasts, 
by  almsdeeds  and  self-abnegation,  was  a  gift,  "without 
money,  and  without  price." 

Once  established  in  the  faith  of  Christ,  his  whole  soul 
burned  with  the  desire  to  spread  Everywhere  a  knowledge  of 
the  glorious  gospel  of  God's  free  grace.  "I  look  upon  all 
the  world  as  my  parish,"  he  said,-"  in  whatever  part  of  it  I 
am,  I  judge  it  meet,  right,  and  my  bounden  duty,  to  declare 
unto  all  that  are  willing  to  hear,  the  glad  tidings  of  sal- 
vation." 

He  continued  his  strict  and  self-denying  life,  not  now  as 
the  ground,  but  the  result  of  faith ;  not  the  root,  but  the  fruit 
of  holiness.  The  grace  of  God  in  Christ  is  the  foundation 
of  the  Christian's  hope,  and  that  grace  will  be  manifested 
in  obedience.  Wesley's  life  was  devoted  to  the  preaching 
of  the  great  truths  which  he  had  received, — justification 
through  faith  in  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ,  and  the 
renewing  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  the  heart,  bringing 
ibrth  fruit  in  a  life  eniiinnncd  to  the  example  of  Christ. 

Whiteiiula  and  the  Wesleys  had  been  prepared  for  their 


LA  TER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  257 

work  by  long  and  sharp  personal  convictions  of  their  own 
lost  condition;  and  that  they  might  be  able  to  endure  hard- 
ness as  good  soldiers  of  Christ,  they  had  been  subjected  to 
the  fiery  ordeal  of  scorn,  derision,  and  persecution,  both  in 
the  university  and  as  they  were  entering  the  ministry.  They 
and  a  few  others  who  sympathized  with  them  were  con- 
temptuously called  Methodists  by  their  ungodly  fellow-stu- 
dents,— a  name  which  is  at  the  present  time  regarded  as 
honorable  by  one  of  the  largest  denominations  in  England 
and  America. 

As  members  of  the  Church  of  England,  they  were  strongly 
attached  to  her  forms  of  worship,  but  the  Lord  had  presented 
before  them  in  his  Word  a  higher  standard.  The  Holy 
Spirit  urged  them  to  preach  Christ  and  him  crucified.  The 
power  of  the  Highest  attended  their  labors.  Thousands 
were  convicted  and  truly  converted.  It  was  necessary  that 
these  sheep  be  protected  from  ravening  wolves.  Wesley  had 
no  thought  of  forming  a  new  denomination,  but  he  organ- 
ized them  under  what  was  called  the  Methodist  Connection. 

Mysterious  and  trying  was  the  opposition  which  these 
preachers  encountered  from  the  established  church ;  yet  God, 
in  his  wisdom,  had  overruled  events  to  cause  the  reform  to 
begin  within  the  church  itself.  Had  it  come  wholly  from 
without,  it  would  not  have  penetrated  where  it  was  so  much 
needed.  But  as  the  revival  preachers  were  churchmen,  and 
labored  within  the  pale  of  the  church  wherever  they  could 
find  opportunity,  the  truth  had  an  entrance  where  the  doors 
would  otherwise  have  remained  closed.  Some  of  the  clergy 
were  roused  from  their  moral  stupor,  and  became  zealous 
preachers  in  their  own  parishes.  Churches  that  had  been 
petrified  by  formalism  were  quickened  into  life. 

In  Wesley's  time,  as  in  all  ages  of  the  church's  history, 
men  of  different  gifts  performed  their  appointed  work. 
They  did  not  harmonize  upon  every  point  of  doctrine,  but 
all  were  moved  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  united  in  the  ab- 
sorbing aim  to  win  souls  to  Christ.  The  differences  between 


258  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Whitefield  and  the  Wesleys  threatened  at  one  time  to  create 
alienation;  but  as  they  learned  meekness  in  the  school  of 
Christ,  mutual  forbearance  and  charity  reconciled  them. 
They  had  no  time  to  dispute,  while  error  and  iniquity  were 
teeming  everywhere,  and  sinners  were  going  dowrn  to  ruin. 

The  servants  of  God  trod  a  rugged  path.  Men  of  influ- 
ence and  learning  employed  their  powers  against  them.  After 
a  time  many  of  the  clergy  manifested  determined  hostility, 
and  the  doors  of  the  churches  were  closed  against  a  pure 
faith,  and  those  who  proclaimed  it.  The  course  of  the  clergy 
in  denouncing  them  from  the  pulpit,  aroused  the  elements  of 
darkness,  ignorance,  and  iniquity.  Again  and  again  did 
John  Wesley  escape  death  by  a  miracle  of  God's  mercy. 
When  the  rage  of  the  mob  was  excited  against  him,  and 
there  seemed  no  way  of  escape,  an  angel  in  human  form 
came  to  his  side,  the  mob  fell  back,  and  the  servant  of  Christ 
passed  in  safety  from  the  place  of  danger. 

Of  his  deliverance  from  the  enraged  mob  upon  one  of 
these  occasions,  Wesley  said:  "Many  endeavored  to  throw 
me  down  while  we  were  going  down  hill  on  a  slippery  path 
to  the  town;  as  well  judging  that  if  I  were  once  on  the 
ground,  I  should  hardly  rise  any  more.  But  I  made  no 
stumble  at  all,  nor  the  least  slip,  till  I  was  entirely  out  of 
their  hands.  Although  many  strove  to  lay  hold  on  my 
collar  or  clothes,  to  pull  me  down,  they  could  not  fasten  at 
all ;  only  one  got  fast  hold  of  the  flap  of  my  waistcoat,  which 
was  soon  left  in  his  hand ;  the  other  flap,  in  the  pocket  of 
which  was  a  bank-note,  was  torn  but  half  off.  A  lusty  man 
just  behind,  struck  at  me  several  times,  with  a  large  oaken 
stick ;  with  which  if  he  had  struck  me  once  on  the  back  part 
of  my  head,  it  would  have  saved  him  further  trouble.  But 
every  time  the  blow  was  turned  aside,  I  know  not  how;  for 
I  could  not  move  the  right  hand  nor  the  left.  Another 
came  rushing  through  the  press,  and  raising  his  arm  to 
strike,  on  a  sudden  let  it  drop,  and  only  stroked  my  head? 
saying,  *  What  soft  hair  he  has.'  .  .  .  The  very  first  men 


LA  TEH  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  259 

whose  hearts  were  turned  were  the  heroes  of  the  town,  the 
captains  of  the  rabble  on  all  occasions,  one  of  them  having 
been  a  prize  fighter  at  the  bear  garden. 

"  By  how  gentle  degrees  does  God  prepare  us  for  his  will ! 
Two  years  ago,  a  piece  of  brick  grazed  my  shoulders.  It 
was  a  year  after  that  the  stone  struck  me  between  the  eyes. 
Last  month  I  received  one  blow,  and  this  evening  two;  one 
before  we  came  into  the  town,  and  one  after  we  were  gone 
out;  but  both  were  as  nothing;  for  though  one  man  struck 
me  on  the  breast  with  all  his  might,  and  the  other  on  the 
mouth  with  such  force  that  the  blood  gushed  out  immedi- 
ately, I  felt  no  more  pain  from  either  of  the  blows  than  if 
they  had  touched  me  with  a  straw." 

The  Methodists  of  those  early  days — people  as  well  as 
preachers — endured  ridicule  and  persecution,  alike  from 
church-members  and  from  the  openly  irreligious  who  were 
inflamed  by  their  misrepresentations.  They  were  arraigned 
before  courts  of  justice — such  only  in  name,  for  justice  was 
rare  in  the  courts  of  that  time.  Often  they  suffered  vio- 
lence from  their  persecutors.  Mobs  went  from  house  to 
house,  destroying  furniture  and  goods,  plundering  whatever 
they  chose,  and  brutally  abusing  men,  women,  and  children. 
In  some  instances,  public  notices  were  posted,  calling  upon 
those  who  desired  to  assist  in  breaking  the  windows  and 
robbing  the  houses  of  the  Methodists  to  assemble  at  a  given 
time  and  place.  These  open  violations  of  both  human  and 
divine  law  were  allowed  to  pass  without  a  reprimand.  A 
systematic  persecution  was  carried  on  against  a  people  whose 
only  fault  was  that  of  seeking  to  turn  the  feet  of  sinners 
from  the  path  of  destruction  to  the  path  of  holiness. 
.  Said  John  Wesley,  referring  to  the  charges  against  him- 
self and  his  associates:  "Some  allege  that  the  doctrines  of 
these  men  are  false,  erroneous,  and  enthusiastic;  that  they 
are  new  and  unheard-of  till  of  late;  that  they  are  Quakerism, 
fanaticism,  popery.  This  whole  pretense  has  been  already 
cut  up  by  the  roots,  it  having  been  shown  at  large  that 

20 


260  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


every  branch  of  this  doctrine  is  the  plain  doctrine  of 
Scripture  interpreted  by  our  own  church.  Therefore  it  can- 
not be  false  or  erroneous,  provided  the  Scripture  be  true." 
"  Others  allege  that  their  doctrines  are  too  strict ;  that  tl  u  -  \ 
make  the  way  to  Heaven  too  narrow;  and  this  is  in  truth 
the  original  objection,  as  it  was  almost  the  only  one  for 
some  time,  and  is  secretly  at  the  bottom  of  a  thousand 
more  which  appear  in  various  forms.  But  do  they  make 
the  way  to  Heaven  any  narrower  than  our  Lord  and  his 
apostles  made  it?  Is  their  doctrine  stricter  than  that  of 
the  Bible?  Consider  only  a  few  plain  texts:  'Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy 
soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength,  and  with  all  thy  mind;  and 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself.' l  '  Every  idle  word  that  men  shall 
speak,  they  shall  give  account  thereof  in  the  day  of  Judg- 
ment.''2 '  Whether  therefore  ye  eat,  or  drink,  or  whatsoever 
ye  do,  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God." 

"  If  their  doctrine  is  stricter  than  this,  they  are  to  blame ; 
but  you  know  in  your  conscience  it  is  not.  And  who  can 
be  one  jot  less  strict  without  corrupting  the  Word  of  God? 
Can  any  steward  of  the  mysteries  of  God  be  found  faithful 
if  he  change  any  part  of  that  sacred  deposition? — No;  he 
can  abate  nothing;  he  can  soften  nothing;  he  is  constrained 
to  declare  to  all  men,  I  may  not  bring  down  the  Scriptures 
to  your  taste.  You  must  come  up  to  it,  or  perish  forever.  The 
popular  cry  is,  The  uncharitableness  of  these  men !  Uncha  r- 
itable,  are  they?  In  what  respect?  Do  they  not  feed  the 
hungry  and  clothe  the  naked?  No;  that  is  not  the  tiling: 
they  are  not  wanting  in  this,  but  they  are  so  uncharitable  in 
judging;  they  think  none  can  be  saved  but  those  who  are  of 
their  own  way." 

The  spiritual   declension   which   had   been   manifest   in 

England  just  before  the  time  of  Wesley,  was  in  gn-;it  degree 

tlic  result  of   Antinomian    teaching.     Many    affirmed    that 

Christ  had  abolished  the  moral  law,  and  that  Christians  are 

1  Luke  10: 27 .  ?  Matt.  1 2  : 30.  3  1  Cor.  10:31. 


LATER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  261 


therefore  under  no  obligation  to  observe  it;  that  a  believer 
is  freed  from  the  "  bondage  of  good  works."  Others,  though 
admitting  the  perpetuity  of  the  law,  declared  that  it  was 
unnecessary  for  ministers  to  exhort  the  people  to  obedience 
of  its  precepts,  since  those  whom  God  had  elected  to  salvation 
would,  "  by  the  irresistible  impulse  of  divine  grace,  be  led 
to  the  practice  of  piety  and  virtue,"  while  those  who  were 
doomed  to  eternal  reprobation  "did  not  have  it  in  their 
power  to  obey  the  divine  law." 

Others,  also  holding  that  "the  elect  cannot  fall  from  grace 
or  forfeit  the  divine  favor,"  arrived  at  the  still  more  hideous 
conclusion  that  "the  wicked  actions  they  commit  are  not 
really  sinful,  nor  to  be  considered  as  instances  of  the  viola- 
tion of  the  divine  law,  and  that  consequently  they  have  no 
occasion  either  to  confess  their  sins  or  to  break  them  off  by 
repentance."  Therefore,  they  declared  that  even  one  of  the 
vilest  of  sins,  "  considered  universally  an  enormous  violation 
of  the  divine  law,  is  not  a  sin  in  the  sight  of  God,"  if  com- 
mitted by  one  of  the  elect,  "  because  it  is  one  of  the  essential 
and  distinctive  characteristics  of  the  elect,  that  they  cannot 
do  anything  which  is  either  displeasing  to  God  or  prohibited 
by  the  law." 

This  monstrous  doctrine  is  essentially  the  same  as  the 
Romish  claim  that  "the  pope  can  dispense  above  the  law, 
and  of  wrong  make  right,  by  correcting  and  changing  laws ; " 
that  "he  can  pronounce  sentences  and  judgments  in  contra- 
diction .  .  .  to  the  law  of  God  and  man."  Both  reveal  the 
inspiration  of  the  same  master-spirit, — of  him  who,  even 
among  the  sinless  inhabitants  of  Heaven,- began  his  work  of 
seeking  to  break  down  the  righteous  restraints  of  the  law  of 
God. 

The  doctrine  of  the  divine  decrees,  unalterably  fixing  the 
character  of  men,  had  led  many  to  a  virtual  rejection  of  the 
law  of  (iod.  Wesley  steadfastly  opposed  the  errors  of  the 
Antinomian  teachers,  and  showed  that  this  doctrine  which 
led  to  Antinomianism  was  contrary  to  the  Scriptures. 


262  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

"The  grace  of  God  that  bringeth  salvation  hath  appeared 
to  oilmen"  "This  is  good  and  acceptable  in  the  sight  of 
God  our  Saviour,  who  will  have  all  men  to  be  saved,  and  to 
come  unto  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.  For  there  is  one  God, 
and  one  mediator  between  God  and  men,  the  man  Christ 
Jesus,  who  gave  himself  a  ransom  for  all"1  The  Spirit  of 
God  is  freely  bestowed,  to  enable  every  man  to  lay  hold  upon 
the  means  of  salvation.  Thus  Christ,  "the  true  Light," 
"lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world."2  Men 
fail  of  salvation  through  their  own  willful  refusal  of  the  gift 
of  life. 

In  answer  to  the  claim  that  at  the  death  of  Christ  the  pre- 
cepts of  the  decalogue  had  been  abolished  with  the  ceremo- 
nial law,  Wesley  said:  "The  moral  law,  contained  in  the  ten 
commandments,  and  enforced  by  the  prophets,  he  did  not 
take  away.  It  was  not  the  design  of  his  coming  to  revoke 
any  part  of  this.  This  is  a  law  which  never  can  be  broken, 
which  '  stands  fast  as  the  faithful  witness  in  Heaven.'  .  .  . 
This  was  from  the  beginning  of  the  world,  being  '  written 
not  on  tables  of  stone,'  but  on  the  hearts  of  all  the  children 
of  men,  when  they  came  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Creator. 
And,  however  the  letters  once  written  by  the  finger  of  God 
are  now  in  a  great  measure  defaced  by  sin,  yet  can  they  not 
wholly  be  blotted  out,  while  we  have  any  consciousness  of 
good  and  evil.  Every  part  of  this  law  must  remain  in  force 
upon  all  mankind,  and  in  all  ages;  as  not  depending  either 
on  time  or  place,  or  any  other  circumstances  liable  to  change, 
but  on  the  nature  of  God,  and  the  nature  of  man,  and  their 
unchangeable  relation  to  each  other. 

"'I  am  not  come  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfill.'  .  .  .  With- 
out question  his  meaning  in  this  place  is  (consistently  with 
all  that  goes  before  and  follows  after), — I  am  come  to  estab- 
lish it  in  its  fullness,  in  spite  of  all  the  glosses  of  men;  lam 
come  to  place  in  a  full  and  clear  vitiw  whatsoever  was  dark 
and  obscure  therein ;  I  am  come  to  declare  the  true  and  full 
import  of  every  part  of  it;  to  show  the  length  and  breadth, 

1  Titus  2:11;  1  Tim  .2:36.  *  John  1  : 9. 


LATER  ENGLISH  REFORMERS.  263 

the  entire  extent,  of  every  commandment  contained  therein, 
and  the  height  and  depth,  the  inconceivable  purity  and 
spirituality  of  it  in  all  its  branches." 

Wesley  declared  the  perfect  harmony  of  the  law  and  the 
gospel.  "  There  is,  therefore,  the  closest  connection  that  can 
be  conceived,  between  the  law  and  the  gospel.  On  the  one 
hand,  the  law  continually  makes  way  for  and  points  us  to, 
the  gospel ;  on  the  other,  the  gospel  continually  leads  us  to  a 
more  exact  fulfilling  of  the  law.  The  law,  for  instance, 
requires  us  to  love  God,  to  love  our  neighbor,  to  be  meek, 
humble,  or  holy.  We  feel  that  we  are  not  sufficient  for 
these  things;  yea,  that  'with  man  this  is  impossible;'  but  we 
see  a  promise  of  God  to  give  us  that  love,  and  to  make  us 
humble,  meek,  and  holy;  we  lay  hold  of  this  gospel,  of  these 
glad  tidings;  it  is  done  to  us  according  to  our  faith;  and 
the  righteousness  of  the  law  is  fulfilled  in  us,  'through  faith 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.' " 

"In  the  highest  rank  of  the  enemies  of  the  gospel  of 
Christ,"  said  Wesley,  "  are  they  who  openly  and  explicitly 
'judge  the  law'  itself,  and  'speak  evil  of  the  law;'  who  teach 
men  to  break  (to  dissolve,  to  loose,  to  untie  the  obligation  of) 
not  one  only,  whether  of  the  least  or  of  the  greatest,  but  all 
the  commandments  at  a  stroke."  "  The  most  surprising  of 
all  the  circumstances  that  attend  this  strong  delusion,  is  that 
they  who  are  given  up  to  it,  really  believe  that  they  honor 
Christ  by  overthrowing  his  law,  and  that  they  are  magnifying 
his  office,  while  they  are  destroying  his  doctrine!  Yea,  they 
honor  him  just  as  Judas  did,  when  he  said,  'Hail,  Master, 
and  kissed  him.'  And  he  may  as  justly  say  to  every  one  of 
them, t Betray est  thou  the  Son  of  man  with  a  kiss?'  It  is 
no  other  than  betraying  him  with  a  kiss,  to  talk  of  his  blood, 
and  take  away  his  crown;  to  set  light  by  any  part  of  his 
law,  under  pretense  of  advancing  his  gospel.  Nor  indeed 
can  anyone  escape  this  charge,  who  preaches  faith  in  any 
such  a  manner  as  either  directly  or  indirectly  tends  to  set 
aside  any  branch  of  obedience;  who  preaches  Christ  so  as  to 


i><;4  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


disannul,  or  weaken  in  any  wise,  the  least  of  the  command- 
ments of  God." 

To  those  who  urged  that  "the  preaching  of  the  gospel 
answers  all  the  ends  of  the  law,"  Wesley  replied :  "  This  we 
utterly  deny.  It  does  not  answer  the  very  first  end  of  the 
law,  namely,  the  convincing  men  of  sin,  the  awakening  those 
who  are  still  asleep  on  the  brink  of  hell."  The  apostle 
Paul  declares  that  "by  the  law  is  the  knowledge  of  sin;" 
and  not  until  man  is  convicted  of  sin,  will  he  truly  feel 
his  need  of  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ  "'They  that  be 
whole,'  as  our  Lord  himself  observes, '  need  not  a  physician, 
but  they  that  are  sick.'  It  is  absurd,  therefore,  to  offer  a 
physician  to  them  that  are  whole,  or  that  at  least  imagine 
themselves  so  to  be.  You  are  first  to  convince  them,  that 
they  are  sick ;  otherwise  they  will  not  thank  yon  for  your 
labor.  It  is  equally  absurd  to  offer  Christ  to  them  whose 
heart  is  whole,  having  never  yet  been  broken." 

Thus  while  preaching  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God, 
Wesley,  like  his  Master,  sought  to  "  magnify  the  law,  and 
make  it  honorable."  Faithfully  did  he  accomplish  the  work 
given  him  of  God,  and  glorious  were  the  results  which  he 
was  permitted  to  behold.  At  the  close  of  his  long  life  of 
more  than  fourscore  years — above  half  a  century  spent  in 
itinerant  ministry — his  avowed  adherents  numbered  more 
than  half  a  million  souls.  But  the  multitude  that  through 
his  labors  had  been  lifted  from  the  ruin  and  degradation  of 
sin  to  a  higher  and  a  purer  life,  and  the  number  who  by  his 
teaching  had  attained  to  a  deeper  and  richer  experience,  will 
never  be  known  till  the  whole  family  of  the  redeemed  shall 
be  gathered  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  His  life  presents  a 
lesson  of  priceless  worth  to  every  Christian.  Would  that  the 
faith  and  humility,  the  untiring  /ml,  self-sacrifice  and  devo- 
tion of  this  servant  of  Christ,  might  be  reflected  in  the 
churches  of  to-day! 


CHAPTER  XV. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION. 

IN  the  sixteenth  century  the  Reformation,  presenting  an 
open  Bible  to  the  people,  had  sought  admission  to  all  the 
countries  of  Europe.  Some  nations  welcomed  it  with  glad- 
ness, as  a  messenger  of  Heaven.  In  other  lands,  popery 
succeeded,  to  a  great  extent,  in  preventing  its  entrance;  and 
the  light  of  Bible  knowledge,  with  its  elevating  influences, 
was  almost  wholly  excluded.  In  one  country,  though  the 
light  found  entrance,  it  was  not  comprehended  by  the  dark- 
ness. For  centuries,  truth  and  error  struggled  for  the  mas- 
tery. At  last  the  evil  triumphed,  and  the  truth  of  Heaven 
was  thrust  out.  "  This  is  the  condemnation,  that  light  is 
come  into  the  world,  and  men  loved  darkness  rather  than 
light."  The  nation  was  left  to  reap  the  results  of  the  course 
which  she  had  chosen.  The  restraint  of  God's  Spirit  was 
removed  from  a  people  that  had  despised  the  gift  of  his 
grace.  Evil  was  permitted  to  come  to  maturity.  And  all 
the  world  saw  the  fruit  of  willful  rejection  of  the  light. 

The  war  against  the  Bible,  carried  forward  for  so  many 
centuries  in  France,  culminated  in  the  scenes  of  the  Revo- 
lution. That  terrible  outbreaking  was  but  the  legitimate 
result  of  Rome's  suppression  of  the  Scriptures.  It  presented 
the  most  striking  illustration  which  the  world  has  ever 
witnessed,  of  the  working  out  of  the  papal  policy, — an  illus- 
tration of  the  results  to  which  for  more  than  .,,  thousand 
years  the  teaching  of  the  Roman  Church  had  been  tending. 

The  suppression  of  the  Scriptures  during  the  period  of 
papal  supremacy  was  foretold  by  the  prophets;  and  the 

1  John  3: 39. 


266  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Kevelator  points  also  to  the  terrible  results  that  were  to 
accrue  especially  to  France  from  the  domination  of  "the 
man  of  sin." 

Said  the  angel  of  the  Lord:  "The  holy  city  [the  true 
church]  shall  they  tread  under  foot  foriy  and  two  months. 
And  I  will  give  power  unto  my  two  witnesses,  and  they 
shall  prophesy  a  thousand  two  hundred  and  threescore 
days,  clothed  in  sackcloth.  .  .  .  And  when  they  shall 
have  finished  their  testimony,  the  beast  that  ascendeth  out 
of  the  bottomless  pit  shall  make  war  against  them*  and 
shall  overcome  them,  and  kill  them.  And  their  dead  bodies 
shall  lie  in  the  street  of  the  great  city,  which  spiritually  is 
called  Sodom  and  Egypt,  where  also  our  Lord  was  crucified. 
.  .  .  And  they  that  dwell  upon  the  earth  shall  rejoice 
over  them,  and  make  merry,  and  shall  send  gifts  one  to 
another;  because  these  two  prophets  tormented  them  that 
dwelt  on  the  earth.  And  after  three  days  and  a  half  the 
Spirit  of  life  from  God  entered  into  them,  and  they  stood 
upon  their  feet;  and  great  fear  fell  upon  them  which  saw 
them."1 

The  periods  here  mentioned — "forty  and  two  months," 
and  "a  thousand  two  hundred  and  threescore  days" — are 
the  same,  alike  representing  the  time  in  which  the  church 
of  Christ  wa's  to  suffer  oppression  from  Rome.  The  1260 
years  of  papal  supremacy  began  with  the  establishment  of 
the  papacy  in  A.  D.  538,  and  would  therefore  terminate  in 
1798.  At  that  time  a  French  army  entered  Rome,  and 
made  the  pope  a  prisoner,  and  he  died  in  exile.  Though  a 
new  pope  was  soon  afterward  elected,  the  papal  hierarchy 
has  never  since  been  able  to  wield  the  power  which  it  before 
possessed. 

The  persecution  of  the  church  did  not  continue  through- 
out the  entire  period  of  the  1260  years.  God  in  mercy  to 
his  people  cut  short  the  time  of  their  fiery  trial.  In  fore- 
telling the  "great  tribulation"  to  befall  the  church,  the 
Saviour  said,  "  Except  those  days  should  be  shortened,  there 

'Rev.  11  :2-ll. 


UNIVERSITY 

-     OF 


THE  BIBLE  ANT)  TI1K  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     267 


should  no  flesh  be  saved  ;  but  for  the  elect's  sake  those 
days  shall  be  shortened."1  Through  the  influence  of  the 
Reformation,  the  persecution  was  brought  to  an  end  prior 
to  1798. 

Concerning  the  two  witnesses,  the  prophet  declares  further, 
"These  are  the  two  olive-trees,  and  the  two  candlesticks 
standing  before  the  God  of  the  earth."  "Thy  Word,"  said 
the  psalmist,  "is  a  lamp  unto  my  feet,  and  a  light  unto  my 
path."2  The  two  witnesses  represent  the  Scriptures  of  the 
Old  and  the  New  Testament.  Both  are  important  testimo- 
nies to  the  origin  and  perpetuity  of  the  law  of  God.  Both 
are  witnesses  also  to  the  plan  of  salvation.  The  types,  sacri- 
fices, and  prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament  point  forward  to  a 
Saviour  to  come.  The  Gospels  and  Epistles  of  the  New 
Testament  tell  of  a  Saviour  who  has  come  in  the  exact 
manner  foretold  by  type  and  prophecy. 

"They  shall  prophesy  a  thousand  two  hundred  and  three- 
score days,  clothed  in  sackcloth."  During  the  greater  part 
of  this  period,  God's  witnesses  remained  in  a  state  of  obscu- 
rity. The  papal  power  sought  to  hide  from  the  people  the 
Word  of  truth,  and  set  before  them  false  witnesses  to  con- 
tradict its  testimony.  When  the  Bible  was  proscribed  by 
religious  and  secular  authority;  when  its  testimony  was 
perverted,  and  every  effort  made  that  men  and  demons  could 
invent  to  turn  the  minds  of  the  people  from  it;  when  those 
who  dared  proclaim  its  sacred  truths  were  hunted,  betrayed, 
tortured,  buried  in  dungeon  cells,  martyred  for  their  faith, 
or  compelled  to  flee  to  mountain  fastnesses,  and  to  dens  and 
caves  of  the  earth, — then  the  faithful  witnesses  prophesied 
in  sackcloth.  Yet  they  continued  their  testimony  through- 
out the  entire  period  of  1260  years.  In  the  darkest  times 
there  were  faithful  men  who  loved  God's  Word,  and  were 
jealous  for  his  honor.  To  these  loyal  servants  were  given 
wisdom,  power,  and  authority  to  declare  his  truth  during 
the  whole  of  this  time. 

1  Matt.  24  :  22.  »  Rev.  II  :  4  ;  Ps.  119  : 105. 


268  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

u  And  if  any  man  will  hurt  them,  fire  proceedeth  out  of 
their  mouth,  and  devoureth  their  enemies;  and  if  any  man 
will  hurt  them,  he  must  in  this  manner  be  killed." l  Men 
cannot  with  impunity  trample  upon  the  Word  of  God.  The 
meaning  of  this  fearful  denunciation  is  set  forth  in  the  clos- 
ing chapter  of  the  Revelation:  "I  testify  unto  every  man 
that  heareth  the  words  of  the  prophecy  of  this  book,  If  any 
man  shall  add  unto  these  things,  God  shall  add  unto  him 
the  plagues  that  are  written  in  this  book.  And  if  any  man 
shall  take  away  from  the  words  of  the  book  of  this  prophecy, 
God  shall  take  away  his  part  out  of  the  book  of  life,  and  out 
of  the  holy  city,  and  from  the  things  which  are  written  in 
this  book."2 

Such  are  the  warnings  which  God  has  given  to  guard 
men  against  changing  in  any  manner  that  which  he  has 
revealed  or  commanded.  These  solemn  denunciations  apply 
to  all  who  by  their  influence  lead  men  to  lightly  regard  the 
law  of  God.  They  should  cause  those  to  fear  and  tremble 
who  flippantly  declare  it  a  matter  of  little  consequence 
whether  we  obey  God's  law  or  not.  All  who  exalt  their  own 
opinions  above  divine  revelation,  all  who  would  change  the 
plain  meaning  of  Scripture  to  suit  their  own  convenience, 
or  for  the  sake  of  conforming  to  the  world,  are  taking  upon 
themselves  a  fearful  responsibility.  The  written  Word,  the 
law  of  God,  will  measure  the  character  of  every  man,  and 
condemn  all  whom  this  unerring  test  shall  declare  wanting. 

"  When  they  shall  have  finished  [are  finishing]  their  testi- 
mony." The  period  when  the  two  witnesses  were  to  proph- 
esy clothed  in  sackcloth  ended  in  1798.  As  they  wnv 
approaching  the  termination  of  their  work  in  obscurity,  war 
was  to  be  made  upon  them  by  the  power  represented  as  "the 
beast  that  ascendeth  out  of  the  bottomless  pit,"  In  ninny 
of  the  nations  of  Europe  the  powers  that  ruled  in  Church 
and  State  had  for  centuries  been  controlled  by  Satan,  through 
the  medium  of  the  papacy.  But  here  is  brought  to  view  u 
new  manifestation  of  Satanic  power. 

.  11:5.  >Rev.  22:18,  19. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     269 

It  had  been  Rome's  policy,  under  a  profession  of  reverence 
for  the  Bible,  to  keep  it  locked  up  in  an  unknown  tongue, 
and  hidden  away  from  the  people.  Under  her  rule  the  wit- 
nesses prophesied,  "clothed  in  sackcloth."  But  another 
power — the  beast  from  the  bottomless  pit — was  to  arise  to 
make  open,  avowed  war  upon  the  Word  of  God. 

The  "great  city"  in  whose  streets  the  witnesses  are  slain, 
and  where  their  dead  bodies  lie,  "is  spiritually  Egypt." 
Of  all  nations  presented  in  Bible  history,  Egypt  most 
boldly  denied  the  existence  of  the  living  God,  and  resisted 
his  commands.  No  monarch  ever  ventured  upon  more  open 
and  high-handed  rebellion  against  the  authority  of  Heaven 
than  did  the  king  of  Egypt.  When  the  message  was 
brought  him  by  Moses,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  Pharaoh 
proudly  answered,  "Who  is  Jehovah,  that  I  should  obey 
his  voice  to  let  Israel  go?  I  know  not  Jehovah,  neither  will 
I  let  Israel  go."1  This  is  atheism;  and  the  nation  rep- 
resented by  Egypt  would  give  voice  to  a  similar  denial  of 
the  claims  of  the  living  God,  and  would  manifest  a  like 
spirit  of  unbelief  and  defiance.  The  "great  city"  is  also 
compared,  "spiritually,"  to  Sodom.  The  corruption  of 
Sodom  in  breaking  the  law  of  God  was  especially  manifested 
in  licentiousness.  And  this  sin  was  also  to  be  a  pre-eminent 
characteristic  of  the  nation  that  should  fulfill  the  specifica- 
tions of  this  scripture. 

According  to  the  words  of  the  prophet,  then,  a  little  before 
the  year  1798  some  power  of  Satanic  origin  and  character 
would  rise  to  make  war  upon  the  Bible.  And  in  the  land 
where  the  testimony  of  God's  two  witnesses  should  thus  be 
silenced,  there  would  be  manifest  the  atheism  of  the  Pharaoh, 
and  the  licentiousness  of  Sodom. 

This  prophecy  has  received  a  most  exact  and  striking  ful- 
fillment in  the  history  of  France.  During  the  Revolution  of 
1793,  "the  world  for  the  first  time  heard  an  assembly  of 
men,  born  and  educated  in  civilization,  and  assuming  the 
right  to  govern  one  of  the  finest  European  nations,  uplift 

1  Ex.  5:2. 


270  THE  GREAT    CONTROVERSY. 


their  united  voice  to  deny  the  most  solemn  truth  which 
man's  soul  receives,  and  renounce  unanimously  the  belief 
and  worship  of  the  Deity."  "France  is  the  only  nation  in 
the  world  concerning  which  the  authentic  record  survives, 
that  as  a  nation  she  lifted  her  hand  in  open  rebellion 
against  the  Author  of  the  universe.  Plenty  of  blasphemers, 
plenty  of  infidels,  there  have  been,  and  still  continue  to  be, 
in  England,  Germany,  Spain,  and  elsewhere;  but  France 
stands  apart  in  the  world's  history  as  the  single  State  which, 
by  the  decree  of  her  legislative  assembly,  pronounced  that 
there  was  110  God,  and  of  which  the  entire  population  of  the 
capital,  and  a  vast  majority  elsewhere,  women  as  well  as 
men,  danced  and  sang  with  joy  in  accepting  the  announce- 
ment." 

France  presented  also  the  characteristic  which  especially 
distinguished  Sodom.  During  the  Revolution  there  was 
manifest  a  state  of  moral  debasement  and  corruption  simi- 
lar to  that  which  brought  destruction  upon  the  cities  of  the 
plain.  And  the  historian  presents  together  the  atheism  and 
licentiousness  of  France,  as  it  is  given  in  the  prophecy: 
"Intimately  connected  with  these  laws  affecting  religion  was 
that  which  reduced  the  union  of  marriage — the  most  sacred 
engagement  which  human  beings  can  form,  and  the  perma- 
nence of  which  leads  most  strongly  to  the  consolidation  of 
society — to  a  state  of  mere  civil  contract  of  a  transitory  char- 
acter, which  any  two  persons  might  engage  in  and  cast  loose 
at  pleasure.  ...  If  fiends  had  set  themselves  at  work 
to  discover  a  mode  of  most  effectually  destroying  whatever  is 
venerable,  graceful,  or  permanent  in  domestic  life,  and  obtain- 
ing at  the  same  time  an  assurance  that  the  mischief  which  it 
was  their  object  to  create  should  be  perpetuated  from  one 
<j,<  n oration  to  another,  they  could  not  have  invented  a  more 
ellrctual  plan  than  the  degradation  of  marriage.  .  .  . 
Sophie  Arnonlt,  an  actress  famous  for  the  witty  things  she 
slid,  descrihcd  the  republican  marriage  as  the 'sacrament  of 
adultery.'" 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     271 

"Where  also  our  Lord  was  crucified."  This  specification 
of  the  prophecy  was  also  fulfilled  by  France.  In  no  land 
had  the  spirit  of  enmity  against  Christ  been  more  strikingly 
displayed.  In  no  country  had  the  truth  encountered  more 
bitter  and  cruel  opposition.  In  the  persecution  which 
France  had  visited  upon  the  confessors  of  the  gospel,  she  had 
crucified  Christ  in  the  person  of  his  disciples. 

Century  after  century  the  blood  of  the  saints  had  been 
shed.  While  the  Waldenses  laid  down  their  lives  upon  the 
mountains  of  Piedmont  "for  the  Word  of  God,  and  for  the 
testimony  of  Jesus  Christ,"  similar  witness  to  the  truth  had 
Ixvii  borne  by  their  brethren,  the  Albigenses  of  France.  In 
the  days  of  the  Reformation,  its  disciples  had  been  put  to 
death  with  horrible  tortures.  King  and  nobles,  high-born 
women  and  delicate  maidens,  the  pride  and  chivalry  of  the 
nation,  had  feasted  their  eyes  upon  the  agonies  of  the  mar- 
tyrs of  Jesus.  The  brave  Huguenots,  battling  for  those  rights 
which  the  human  heart  holds  most  sacred,  had  poured  out 
their  blood  on  many  a  hard-fought  field.  The  Protestants 
were  counted  as  outlaws,  a  price  was  set  upon  their  heads, 
and  they  were  hunted  down  like  wild  beasts. 

The  "  Church  in  the  Desert,"  the  few  descendants  of  the 
ancient  Christians  that  still  lingered  in  France  in  the  eight- 
eenth century,  hiding  away  in  the  mountains  of  the  south, 
still  cherished  the  faith  of  their  fathers.  As  they  ventured 
to  meet  by  night  on  mountain-side  or  lonely  moor,  they 
were  chased  by  dragoons,  and  dragged  away  to  life-long 
slavery  in  the  galleys.  "The  purest,  the  most  refined,  and 
the  most  intelligent  of  the  French,  were  chained,  in  horrible 
torture,  amidst  robbers  and  assassins."  Others,  more  merci- 
fully dealt  with,  were  shot  down  in  cold  blood,  as,  unarmed 
and  helpless,  they  fell  upon  their  knees  in  prayer.  Hundreds 
of  aged  men,  defenseless  women,  and  innocent  children  were 
left  dead  upon  the  earth  at  their  place  of  meeting.  In  t  ravers- 
ing  the  mountain-side  or  the  forest,  where  they  had  been 
accustomed  to  assemble,  it  was  not  unusual  to  find  "at  every 


272  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


four  paces  dead  bodies  dotting  the  sward,  and  corpses  hang- 
ing suspended  from  the  trees."  Their  country,  "  laid  waste 
with  the  sword,  the  ax,  the  fagot,  was  converted  into  a  vast, 
gloomy  wilderness."  These  atrocities  were  not  committed 
during  the  Dark  Ages,  but  in  that  brilliant  era  "when 
science  was  cultivated,  and  -letters  flourished ;  when  the 
divines  of  the  court  and  the  capital  were  learned  and  eloquent 
men,  who  greatly  affected  the  graces  of  meekness  and 
charity." 

But  blackest  in  the  black  catalogue  of  crime,  most  horrible 
among  the  fiendish  deeds  of  all  the  dreadful  centuries,  was 
the  St.  Bartholomew  Massacre.  The  world  still  recalls  with 
shuddering  horror  the  scenes  of  that  most  cowardly  and 
cruel  onslaught.  The  king  of  France,  urged  on  by  Romish 
priests  and  prelates,  lent  his  sanction  to  the  dreadful  work. 
The  great  bell  of  the  palace,  tolling  at  dead  of  night,  was  a 
signal  for  the  slaughter.  Protestants  by  thousands,  sleeping 
quietly  in  their  homes,  trusting  to  the  plighted  honor  of 
their  king,  were  dragged  forth  without  a  warning,  and  mur- 
dered in  cold  blood. 

Satan,  in  the  person  of  the  Roman  zealots,  led  the  van. 
As  Christ  was  the  invisible  leader  of  his  people  from  Egyp- 
tian bondage,  so  was  Satan  the  unseen  leader  of  his  subjects 
in  this  horrible  work  of  multiplying  martyrs.  For  seven 
days  the  massacre  was  continued  in  Paris,  the  first  three 
with  inconceivable  fury.  And  it  was  not  confined  to  the 
city  itself,  but  by  special  order  of  the  king  extended  to  all 
provinces  and  towns  where  Protestants  were  found.  Neither 
age  nor  sex  was  respected.  Neither  the  innocent  babe  nor 
the  man  of  gray  hairs  was  spared.  Noble  and  peasant,  old 
and  young,  mother  and  child,  were  cut  down  together. 
Throughout  France  the  butchery  continued  for  two  months. 
Seventy  thousand  of  the  very  flower  of  the  nation  perished. 

"  The  pope,  Gregory  XIII.,  received  the  news  of  the  fate  of 
the  Huguenots  with  unbounded  joy:  The  wish  of  his 
heart  had  been  gratified,  and  Charles  IX.  was  now  his  favor- 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UT10N.     273 

ite  son.  Rome  rang  with  rejoicings.  The  guns  of  the  cas- 
tle of  St.  Aiigelo  gave  forth  a  joyous  salute;  the  bells  sounded 
from  every  tower;  bonfires  blazed  throughout  the  night; 
and  Gregory,  attended  by  his  cardinals  and  priests,  led  the 
magnificent  procession  to  the  church  of  St.  Louis,  where 
the  cardinal  of  Lorraine  chanted  a  Te  Deum.  The  cry  of  the 
dying  host  in  France  was  gentle  harmony  to  the  court  of 
Rome.  A  medal  was  struck  to  commemorate  the  glorious 
massacre;  a  picture,  which  still  exists  in  the  Vatican,  was 
painted,  representing  the  chief  events  of  St.  Bartholomew. 
The  pope,  eager  to  show  his  gratitude  to  Charles  for  his  duti- 
ful conduct,  sent  him  the  Golden  Rose;  and  from  the  pul- 
pits of  Rome  eloquent  preachers  celebrated  Charles,  Cath- 
erine, and  the  Guises  as  the  new  founders  of  the  papal 
church." 

The  same  master-spirit  that  urged  on  the  St.  Bartholomew 
Massacre  led  also  in  the  scenes  of  the  Revolution.  Jesus 
Christ  was  declared  to  be  an  impostor,  and  the  rallying  cry 
of  the  French  infidels  was,  "  Crush  the  Wretch,"  meaning 
Christ.  Heaven-daring  blasphemy  and  abominable  wicked- 
ness went  hand  in  hand,  and  the  basest  of  men,  the  most 
abandoned  monsters  of  cruelty  and  vice,  were  most  highly 
exalted.  In  all  this,  supreme  homage  was  paid  to  Satan; 
while  Christ,  in  his  characteristics  of  truth,  purity,  and 
unselfish  love,  was  crucified. 

"  The  beast  that  ascendeth  out  of  the  bottomless  pit  shall 
make  war  against  them,  and  shall  overcome  them,  and  kill 
them."  The  atheistical  power  that  ruled  in  France  during 
the  Revolution  and  the  reign  of.  terror,  did  wage  such  a  war 
upon  the  Bible  as  the  world  had  never  .witnessed.  The 
Word  of  God  was  prohibited  by  the  national  assembly. 
Bibles  were  collected  and  publicly  burned  with  every  pos- 
sible manifestation  of  scorn.  The  law  of  God  was  trampled 
under  foot.  The  institutions  of  the  Bible  were  abolished. 
The  weekly  rest-day  was  set  aside,  and  in  its  stead  every 
tentli  day  was  devoted  to  reveling  and  blasphemy.  Baptism 


274  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


and  the  communion  were  prohibited.  And  announcements 
posted  conspicuously  over  the  burial-places  declared  death 
to  be  an  eternal  sleep. 

The  fear  of  God  was  said  to  be  so  far  from  the  beginning 
of  wisdom  that  it  was  the  beginning  of  folly.  All  religious 
worship  was  prohibited,  except  that  of  liberty  and  the 
country.  "The  constitutional  bishop  of  Paris  was  brought 
forward  to  play  the  principal  part  in  the  most  impudent  and 
scandalous  farce  ever  enacted  in  the  face  of  a  national  rep- 
resentation. .  .  .  He  was  brought  forward  in  full  pro- 
cession, to  declare  to  the  convention  that  the  religion  which 
he  had  taught  so  many  years  was,  in  every  respect,  a  piece 
of  priestcraft,  which  had  no  foundation  either  in  history  or 
in  sacred  truth.  He  disowned  in  solemn  and  explicit  terms 
the  existence  of  the  Deity,  to  whose  worship  he  had  been 
consecrated,  and  devoted  himself  in  future  to  the  homage  of 
liberty,  equality,  virtue,  and  morality.  He  then  laid  on  the 
table  his  episcopal  decorations,  and  received  a  fraternal 
embrace  from  the  president  of  the  convention.  Several 
apostate  priests  followed  the  example  of  this  prelate." 

"And  they  that  dwell  upon  the  earth  shall  rejoice  over 
them,  and  make  merry,  and  shall  send  gifts  one  to  another; 
because  these  two  prophets  tormented  them  that  dwelt  on 
the  earth."  Infidel  France  had  silenced  the  reproving  voice 
of  God's  two  witnesses.  The  Word  of  truth  lay  dead  in 
her  streets,  and  those  who  hated  the  restrictions  and  require- 
ments of  God's  law  were  jubilant.  Men  publicly  defied 
the  King  of  Heaven.  Like  the  sinners  of  old,  they  cried, 
"How  doth  God  know?  and  is  there  knowledge  in  the  Most 
High?"1 

With  blasphemous  boldness  almost  beyond  belief,  one  of 
the  priests  of  the  new  order  said:  "God,  if  you  exist,  avenge 
your  injured  name.  I  bid  you  defiance!  You  remain 
silt  n!.  You  dare  not  launch  your  thunders!  Who,  after 
this,  will  believe  in  your  existence?"  What  an  echo  is  this 

Ps.  73:11. 


THE  BIBLE  A  XD  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     275 


of  the  Pharaoh's  demand:  "Who  is  Jehovah,  that  I  should 
obey  his  voice?"     "I  know  not  Jehovah!" 

"  The  fool  hath  said  in  his  heart,  There  is  no  God."  '  And 
the  Lord  declares  concerning  the  perverters  of  the  truth, 
"  Their  folly  shall  be  manifest  nnto  all." 2  After  France  had 
renounced  the  worship  of  the  living  God,  "the  high  and 
lofty  One  that  inhabiteth  eternity,"  it  was  only  a  little  time 
till  she  descended  to  degrading  idolatry,  by  the  worship  of 
the  Goddess  of  Reason,  in  the  person  of  a  profligate  woman. 
And  this  in  the  representative  assembly  of  the  nation,  and 
by  its  highest  civil  and  legislative  authorities!  Says  the 
historian :  "  One  of  the  ceremonies  of  this  insane  time  stands 
unrivaled  for  absurdity  combined  with  impiety.  The  doors 
of  the  convention  were  thrown  open  to  a  band  of  musicians, 
preceded  by  whom  the  members  of  the  municipal  body 
entered  in  solemn  procession,  singing  a  hymn  in  praise  of 
liberty,  and  escorting,  as  the  object  of  their  future  worship, 
a  veiled  female  whom  they  termed  the  Goddess  of  Reason. 
Being  brought  within  the  bar,  she  was  unveiled  with  great 
form,  and  placed  on  the  right  hand  of  the  president,  when 
she  wras  generally  recognized  as  a  dancing  girl  of  the  opera. 
.  .  .  To  this  person,  as  the  fittest  representative  of  that 
reason  whom  they  worshiped,  the  national  convention  of 
France  rendered  public  homage.  This  impious  and  ridic- 
ulous mummery  had  a  certain  fashion ;  and  the  installation 
of  the  Goddess  of  Reason  was  renewed  and  imitated  through- 
out the  nation  in  such  places  where  the  inhabitants  desired 
to  show  themselves  equal  to  all  the  heights  of  the  Rev- 
olution." 

Said  the  orator  who  introduced  the  worship  of  reason : 
"Legislative  fanaticism  has  lost  its  hold;  it  has  given  place 
to  reason.  We  have  left  its  temples;  they  are  regenerated. 
To-day  an  immense  multitude  are  assembled  under  its  gothic 
roofs,  which,  for  the  first  time,  will  re-echo  the  voice  of  truth. 
There  the  French  will  celebrate  the  true  worship,  that  of 

'Ps.  14:1.  22Tim.  3:9. 


27(5  THE   GREAT  COXTROVERST. 


Liberty  and  Reason.  There  we  will  form  new  vows  for  the 
prosperity  of  the  armies  of  the  Republic;  there  we  will 
abandon  the  worshfp  of  inanimate  idols  for  that  of  Reason— 
this  animated  image,  the  masterpiece  of  creation." 

When  the  goddess  was  brought  into  the  convention,  the 
orator  took  her  by  the  hand,  and  turning  to  the  assembly 
said:  "Mortals,  cease  to  tremble  before  the  powerless  thun- 
ders of  a  God  whom  your  fears  have  created.  Henceforth 
acknowledge  no  divinity  but  Reason.  I  otter  you  its  noblest 
and  purest  image;  if  you  must  have  idols,  sacrifice  only  tc 
such  as  this.  .  .  .  Fall  before  the  august  senate  of 
freedom,  veil  of  Reason." 

"The  goddess,  after  being  embraced  by  the  president,  was 
mounted  on  a  magnificent  car,  and  conducted,  amidst  an 
immense  crowd,  to  the  cathedral  of  Notre  Dame,  to  take  the 
place  of  the  Deity.  Then  she  was  elevated  on  the  high 
altar,  and  received  the  adoration  of  all  present." 

This,  was  followed,  not  long  afterward,  by  the  public  burn- 
ing of  the  Bible.  And  "the  popular  society  of  the  museum 
entered  the  hall  of  the  municipality,  exclaiming,  Vive  la 
Raison!  and  carrying  on  the  top  of  a  pole  the  half-burned 
remains  of  several  books,  among  others  the  breviaries  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments,  which  'expiated  in  a  great  fire,' 
said  the  president,  'all  the  fooleries  which  they  have  made 
the  human  race  commit.' " 

It  was  popery  that  had  begun  the  work  which  atheism 
was  completing.  The  policy  of  Rome  had  wrought  out 
those  conditions,  social,  political,  and  religious,  that  were 
hurrying  France  on  to  ruin.  A  writer,  speaking  of  the 
horrors  of  the  Revolution,  says:  "Those  excesses  are  in  truth 
to  be  charged  upon  the  throne  and  the  church."  In  strict 
justice  they  are  to  be  charged  upon  the  church.  Popery  had 
poisoned  the  minds  of  kings  against  the  Reformation,  as  an 
enemy  to  the  crown,  an  element  of  discord  that  would  be 
fatal  to  the  peace  and  harmony  of  the  nation.  It  was  the 
genius  of  Rome  that  by  this  means  inspired  the  direst  cru- 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     277 

elty  and  the  most  galling  oppression  which  proceeded  from 
the  throne. 

The  spirit  of  liberty  went  with  the  Bible.  Wherever  the 
gospel  was  received,  the  minds  of  the  people  were  awakened. 
They  began  to  cast  off  the  shackles  that  had  held  them 
bondslaves  of  ignorance,  vice,  and  superstition.  They  began 
to  think  and  act  as  men.  Monarchs  saw  it,  and  trembled 
for  their  despotism. 

Rome  was  not  slow  to  inflame  their  jealous  fears.  Said 
the  pope  to  the  regent  of  France  in  1523:  "This  mania 
[Protestantism]  will  not  only  destroy  religion,  but  all  prin- 
cipalities, nobilities,  laws,  orders,  and  ranks  besides."  A  few 
years  later  a  papist  dignitary  warned  the  king,  "If  you 
wish  to  preserve  your  sovereign  rights  intact;  if  you  wish  to 
keep  the  nations  submitted  to  you  in  tranquillity,  manfully 
defend  the  Catholic  faith,  and  subdue  all  its  enemies  by  your 
arms."  And  theologians  appealed  to  the  prejudices  of  the 
people  by  declaring  that  the  Protestant  doctrine  "  entices 
men  away  to  novelties  and  folly;  it  robs  the  king  of  the 
devoted  affection  of  his  subjects,  and  devastates  both  Church 
and  State."  Thus  Rome  succeeded  in  arraying  France 
against  the  Reformation.  "It  was  to  uphold  the  throne, 
preserve  the  nobles,  and  maintain  the  laws,  that  the  sword 
of  persecution  was  first  unsheathed  in  France." 

Little  did  the  rulers  of  the  land  foresee  the  results  of  that 
fateful  policy.  The  teaching  of  the  Bible  would  have 
implanted  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  people  those  princi- 
ples of  justice,  temperance,  truth,  equity,  and  benevolence 
which  are  the  very  corner-stone  of  a  nation's  prosperity. 
"  Righteousness  exalteth  a  nation."  Thereby  "  the  throne  is 
established." l  " The  work  of  righteousness  shall  be  peace; " 
and  the  effect,  "  quietness  and  assurance  forever." a  He  who 
obeys  the  divine  law  will  most  truly  respect  and  obey  the  laws 
of  his  country.  He  who  fears  God  will  honor  the  king  in  the 
exercise  of  all  just  and  legitimate  authority.  But  unhappy 
France  prohibited  the  Bible,  and  banned  its  disciples.  Cent- 

i  Prov.  14:  34;  16: 12.  2Isa.  32  :  17. 


278  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ury  after  century,  men  of  principle  and  integrity,  men  of 
intellectual  acuteness  and  moral  strength,  who  had  the  cour- 
age to  avow  their  convictions,  and  the  faith  to  suffer  for  the 
truth, — for  centuries  these  men  toiled  as  slaves  in  the  gal- 
leys, perished  at  the  stake,  or  rotted  in  dungeon  cells. 
Thousands  upon  thousands  found  safety  in  flight;  and  this 
continued  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  after  the  opening 
of  the  Reformation. 

"Scarcely  was  there  a  generation  of  Frenchmen  during 
that  long  period  that  did  not  witness  the  disciples  of  the  gos- 
pel fleeing  before  the  insane  fury  of  the  persecutor,  and  car- 
rying with  them  the  intelligence,  the  arts,  the  industry,  the 
order,  in  which,  as  a  rule,  they  pre-eminently  excelled,  to 
enrich  the  land  in  which  they  found  an  asylum.  And  in 
proportion  as  they  replenished  other  countries  with  these 
good  gifts,  did  they  empty  their  own  of  them.  If  all  that 
was  now  driven  away  had  been  retained  in  France;  if,  dur- 
ing these  three  hundred  years,  the  industrial  skill  of  the 
exiles  had  been  cultivating  her  soil ;  if,  during  these  three 
hundred  years,  their  artistic  bent  had  been  improving  her 
manufactures;  if,  during  these  three  hundred  years,  their 
creative  genius  and  analytic  power  had  been  enriching 
her  literature  and  cultivating  her  science;  if  their  wisdom 
had  been  guiding  her  councils,  their  bravery  fighting  her 
battles,  their  equity  framing  her  laws,  and  the  religion 
of  the  Bible  strengthening  the  intellect  and  governing  t lie 
conscience  of  her  people,  what  a  glory  would  at  this  day  have 
encompassed  France!  What  a  great,  prosperous,  and  happy 
country — a  pattern  to  the  nations — would  she  have  been ! 

"But  a  blind  and  inexorable  bigotry  chased  from  her  soil 
every  teacher  of  virtue,  every  champion  of  order,  every  hon- 
est defender  of  the  throne;  it  said  to  the  men  who  would 
have  made  their  country  a  'renown  and  glory '  in  the  earth, 
Choose  which  you  will  have,  a  stake  or  exile.  At  last  the 
ruin  of  the  State  was  complete;  there  remained  no  more 
conscience  to  be  proscribed;  no  more  religion  to  IK-  dragged 


THE  BIBLE  A  ND  T.TIE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UT10N.    279 


to  the  stake;  no  more  patriotism  to  bo  chased  into  banish- 
ment." And  the  Revolution,  with  all  its  horrors,  was  the 
dire  result. 

"  With  the  night  of  the  Huguenots  a  general  decline  set- 
tled upon  France.  Flourishing  manufacturing  cities  fell 
into  decay;  fertile  districts  returned  to  their  native  wiidness ; 
intellectual  dullness  and  moral  declension  succeeded  a  period 
of  unwonted  progress.  Paris  became  one  vast  almshouse, 
and  it  is  estimated  that,  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revo- 
lution, two  hundred  thousand  paupers  claimed  charity  from 
the  hands  of  the  king.  The  Jesuits  alone  nourished  in  the 
decaying  nation,  and  ruled  with  dreadful  tyranny  over 
churches  and  schools,  the  prisons  and  the  galleys." 

The  gospel  would  have  brought  to  France  the  solution  of 
those  political  and  social  problems  that  baffled  the  skill  of  her 
clergy,  her  king,  and  her  legislators,  and  finally  plunged  the 
nation  into  anarchy  and  ruin.  But  under  the  domination 
of  Rome  the  people  had  lost  the  Saviour's  hlessed  lessons  of 
self-sacrifice  and .  unselfish  love.  They  had  been  led  away 
from  the  practice  of  self-denial  for  the  good  of  others.  The 
rich  had  found  no  rebuke  for  their  oppression  of  the  poor, 
the  poor  no  help  for  their  servitude  and  degradation.  The 
selfishness  of  the  wealthy  and  powerful  grew  more  and 
more  apparent  and  oppressive.  For  centuries  the  greed  and 
profligacy  of  the  noble  resulted  in  grinding  extortion  toward 
the  peasant.  The  rich  wronged  the  poor,  and  the  poor  hated 
the  rich. 

In  many  provinces  the  estates  were  held  by  the  nobles, 
and  the  laboring  classes  were  only  tenants ;  they  were  at  the 
mercy  of  their  landlords,  and  were  forced  to  submit  to  their 
exorbitant  demands.  The  burden  of  supporting  both  the 
Church  and  the  State  fell  upon  the  middle  and  lower  classes, 
who  were  heavily  taxed  by  the  civil  authorities 'and  by  the 
clergy.  "The  pleasure  of  the  nobles  was  considered  the 
supreme  law;  the  farmers  and  the  peasants  might  starve,  for 
aught  their  oppressors  cared.  .  .  .  The  people  were  com- 


280  THE    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


polled  at  every  turn  to  consult  the  exclusive  interest  of  t ho 
landlord.  The  lives  of  the  agricultural  laborers  were  lives  of 
incessant  work  and  unrelieved  misery;  their  complaints,  if 
they  ever  dared  to  complain,  were  treated  with  insolent  con- 
tempt. The  courts  of  justice  would  always  listen  to  a  noble  as 
against  a  peasant;  bribes  were  notoriously  accepted  by  the 
judges;  and  the  merest  caprice  of  the  aristocracy  had  the 
force  of  law,  by  virtue  of  this  system  of  universal  corruption. 
Of  the  taxes  wrung  from  the  commonalty,  by  the  secular 
magnates  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  clergy  on  the  other,  not 
half  ever  found  its  way  into  the  royal  or  episcopal  treasury; 
the  rest  was  squandered  in  profligate  self-indulgence.  And 
the  men  who  thus  impoverished  their  fellow-subjects  were 
themselves  exempt  from  taxation,  and  entitled  by  law  or  cus- 
tom to  all  the  appointments  of  the  State.  The  privileged 
classes  numbered  a  hundred  and  fifty  thousand,  and  for  their 
gratification  millions  were  condemned  to  hopeless  and  degrad- 
ing lives." 

The  court  was  given  up  to  luxury  and  profligacy.  There 
was  little  confidence  existing  between  the  people  and  the 
rulers.  Suspicion  fastened  upon  all  the  measures  of  the 
government,  as  designing  and  selfish.  For  more  than  half 
a  century  before  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  the  throne  was 
occupied  by  Louis  XV.,  who  even  in  those  evil  times  was 
distinguished  as  an  indolent,  frivolous,  and  sensual  monarch. 
With  a  depraved  and  cruel  aristocracy  and  an  impoverished 
and  ignorant  lower  class,  the  State  financially  embarrassed 
and  the  people  exasperated,  it  needed  no  prophet's  eye  to 
foresee  a  terrible  impending  outbreak.  To  the  warnings  of 
his  counselors  the  king  was  accustomed  to  reply,  "  Try  to 
make  things  go  on  as  long  as  I  am  likely  to  live;  after  my 
death  it  may  be  as  it  will."  It  was  in  vain  that  the  neces- 
sity of  reform  was  urged.  He  saw  the  evils,  but  had  neither 
the  courage  nor  the  power  to  meet  them.  The  doom  await- 
ing France  was  but  too  truly  pictured  in  his  indolent  and 
selfish  answer, — "After  me  the  deluge!" 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  REVOL  UTION.     281 

By  working  upon  the  jealousy  of  the  kings  and  the  ruling 
classes,  Rome  had  influenced  them  to  keep  the  people  in 
bondage,  well  knowing  that  the  State  would  thus  be  weak- 
ened, and  purposing  by  this  means  to  fasten  both  rulers  and 
people  in  her  thrall.  With  far-sighted  policy  she  perceived 
that  in  order  to  enslave  men  effectually,  the  shackles  must  be 
bound  upon  their  souls ;  that  the  surest  way  to  prevent  them 
from  escaping  their  bondage  was  to  render  them  incapable 
of  freedom.  A  thousand-fold  more  terrible  than  the  physical 
suffering  which  resulted  from  her  policy,  was  the  moral  deg- 
radation. Deprived  of  the  Bible,  and  abandoned  to  the 
teachings  of  bigotry  and  selfishness,  the  people  were  shrouded 
in  ignorance  and  superstition,  and  sunken  in  vice,  so  that 
they  were  wholly  unfitted  for  self-government. 

But  the  outworking  of  all  this  was  widely  different  from 
what  Rome  had  purposed.  Instead  of  holding  the  masses  in 
a  blind  submission  to  her  dogmas,  her  work  resulted  in 
making  them  infidels  and  revolutionists.  Romanism  they 
despised  as  priestcraft.  .  They  beheld  the  clergy  as  a  party  to 
their  oppression.  The  only  god  they  knew  was  the  god  of 
Rome ;  her  teaching  was  their  only  religion.  They  regarded 
her  greed  and  cruelty  as  the  legitimate  fruit  of  the  Bible 
and  they  would  have  none  of  it. 

Rome  had  misrepresented  the  character  of  God,  and  per- 
verted his  requirements,  and  now  men  rejected  both  the 
Bible  and  its  Author.  She  had  required  a  blind  faith  in  her 
dogmas,  under  the  pretended  sanction  of  the  Scriptures.  In 
the  reaction,  Voltaire  and  his  associates  cast  aside  God's 
Word  altogether,  and  spread  everywhere  the  poison  of  infi- 
delity. Rome  had  ground  down  the  people  under  her  iron 
heel;  and  now  the  masses,  degraded  and  brutalized,  in 
their  recoil  from  her  tyranny  cast  off  all  restraint.  Enraged 
at  the  glittering  cheat  to  which  they  had  so  long  paid  hom- 
age, they  rejected  truth  and  falsehood  together;  and  mistak- 
ing license  for  liberty,  the  slaves  of  vice  exulted  in  their  im- 
agined freedom. 


282  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


At  the  opening  of  the  Revolution,  by  a  concession  of  the 
king,  the  people  were  granted  a  representation  exceeding 
that  of  the  nobles  and  the  clergy  combined.  Thus  the  balance 
of  power  was  in  their  hands;  but  they  were  not  prepared  to 
use  it  with  wisdom  and  moderation.  Eager  to  redress  the 
wrongs  they  had  suffered,  they  determined  to  undertake  the 
reconstruction  of  society.  An  outraged  populace,  whose 
minds  were  filled  with  bitter  and  long-treasured  memories 
of  wrong,  resolved  to  revolutionize  the  state  of  misery  that 
had  grown  unbearable,  and  to  revenge  themselves  upon 
those  whom  they  regarded  as  the  authors  of  their  sufferings. 
The  oppressed  wrought  out  the  lesson  they  had  learned 
under  tyranny,  and  became  the  oppressors  of  those  who  had 
oppressed  them. 

Unhappy-France  reaped  in  blood  the  harvest  she  had  sown. 
Terrible  were  the  results  of  her  submission  to  the  controlling 
power  of  Rome.  Where  France,  under  the  influence  of  Ro- 
manism, had  set  up  the  first  stake  at  the  opening  of  the 
Reformation,  there  the  Revolution  set  up  its  first  guillotine. 
On  the  very  spot  where  the  first  martyrs  to  the  Protestant 
faith  were  burned  in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  first  victims 
were  guillotined  in  the  eighteenth.  In  repelling  the  gospel, 
which,  would  have  brought  her  healing,  France  had -opened 
the  door  to  infidelity  and  ruin.  When  the  rest  mints  of  God's 
law  were  cast  aside,  it  was  found  that  the  laws  of  man  were 
inadequate  to  hold  in  check  the  powerful  tides  of  human 
passion;  and  the  nation  swept  on  to  revolt  and  anarchy. 
The  war  against  the  Bible  inaugurated  an  era  which  stands 
in  the  world's  history  as  "  The  Reign  of  Terror."  Peace'  and 
happiness  were  banished  from  the  homes  and  hearts  of  men. 
No  one  was  secure.  He  who  triumphed  in-day  was  sus- 
pected, condemned  to-morrow.  Violence  and  lust  held  un- 
disputed sway. 

King,  clergy,  and  nobles  were  compelled  to  submit  1o  tin4 
atrocities  of  an  excited  and  maddened  people.  Their  (hirst 
for  vengeance  was  only  stimulated  by  the  execution  of  t  he 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION.     283 

king;  and  those  who  had  decreed  his  death,  soon  followed 
him  to  the  scaffold.  A  general  slaughter  of  all  suspected 
of  hostility  to  the  Revolution  was  determined.  The  prisons 
were  crowded,  at  one  time  containing  more  than  two  hun- 
dred thousand  captives.  The  cities  of  the  kingdom  were 
filled  with  scenes  of  horror.  One  party  of  revolutionists  was 
against  another  party,  and  France  became  a  vast  field  for 
contending  masses,  swayed  by  the  fury  of  their  passions. 
"  In  Paris  one  tumult  succeeded  another,  and  the  citizens 
were  divided  into  a  medley  of  factions,  that  seemed  intent 
on  nothing  but  mutual  extermination."  And  to  add  to  the 
general  misery,  the  nation  became  involved  in  a  prolonged 
and  devastating  war  with  the  great  powers  of  Europe.  "The 
country  was  nearly  bankrupt,  the  armies  were  clamoring  for 
arrears  of  pay,  the  Parisians  were  starving,  the  provinces 
were  laid  waste  by  brigands,  and  civilization  was  almost 
extinguished  in  anarchy  and  license." 

All  too  well  the  people  had  learned  the  lessons  of  cruelty 
and  torture  which  Rome  had  so  diligently  taught.  A  day 
of  retribution  at  last  had  come.  It  was  not  now  the  disciples 
of  Jesus  that  were  thrust  into  dungeons  and  dragged  to  the 
stake.  Long  ago  these  had  perished  or  been  driven  into 
exile.  Unsparing  Rome  now  felt  the  deadly  power  of  those 
whom  she  had  trained  to  delight  in  deeds  of  blood.  "  The 
example  of  persecution  which  the  clergy  of  France  had 
exhibited  for  so  many  ages,  was  now  retorted  upon  them 
with  signal  vigor.  The  scaffolds  ran  red  with  the  blood  of 
the  priests.  The  galleys  and  the  prisons,  once  crowded 
with  Huguenots,  were  now  filled  with  their  persecutors. 
Chained  to  the  bench  and  toiling  at  the  oar,  the  Roman 
Catholic  clergy  experienced  all  those  woes  which  their  church 
had  so  freely  inflicted  on  the  gentle  heretics." 

"Then  came  those  days  when  the  most  barbarous  of  all 
codes  was  administered  by  the  most  barbarous  of  all  tribu- 
nals; when  no  man  could  greet  his  neighbors,  or  say  his 
prayers  .  .  .  without  danger  of  committing  a  capital 

22 


284  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


crime;  when  spies  lurked  in  every  corner;  when  the  guil- 
lotine was  long  and  hard  at  work  every  morning;  when  the 
jails  were  filled  as  close  as  the  holds  of  a  slave-ship;  when 
the  glitters  ran  foaming  with  blood  into  the  Seine.  .  .  . 
While  the  daily  wagon-loads  of  victims  were  carried  to  their 
doom  through  the  streets  of  Paris,  the  proconsuls,  whom 
the  sovereign  committee  had  sent  forth  to  the  departments, 
reveled  in  an  extravagance  of  cruelty  unknown  even  in  the 
capital.  The  knife  of  the  deadly  machine  rose  and  fell  too 
slow  for  their  work  of  slaughter.  Long  rows  of  captives 
wrere  mowed  down  with  grape-shot.  Holes  were  made  in 
the  bottom  of  crowded  barges.  Lyons  was  turned  into  a 
desert.  At  Arras  even  the  cruel  mercy  of  a  speedy  death 
was  denied  to  the  prisoners.  All  down  the  Loire,  from 
Saumur  to  the  sea,  great  flocks  of  crows  and  kites  feasted  on 
naked  corpses,  twined  together  in  hideous  embraces.  No 
mercy  was  shown  to  sex  or  age.  The  number  of  young 
lads  and  of  girls  of  seventeen  who  were  murdered  by  that 
execrable  government  is  to  be  reckoned  by  hundreds.  Ba- 
bies torn  from  the  breast  were  tossed  from  pike  to  pike  along 
the  Jacobin  ranks."  In  the  short  space  of  ten  years,  mill 
ions  of  human  beings  perished. 

All  this  was  as  Satan  would  have  it.  This  was  what  for 
ages  he  had  been  working  to  secure.  His  policy  is  deception 
from  first  to  last,  and  his  steadfast  purpose  is  to  bring  woe  and 
wretchedness  upon  men,  to  deface  and  defile  the  workman- 
ship of  God,  to  mar  the  divine  purposes  of  benevolence  and 
love,  and  thus  cause  grief  in  Heaven.  Then  by  his  deceptive 
arts  he  blinds  the  minds  of  men,  and  leads  them  to  throw 
back  the  blame  of  his  work  upon  God,  as  if  all  this  misery 
were  the  result  of  the  Creator's  plan.  In  like  manner,  when 
those  who  have  been  degraded  and  brutalized  through  his 
cruel  power  achieve  their  freedom,  he  urges  them  on  to 
excesses  and  atrocities.  Then  this  picture  of  unbridled 
license  is  pointed  out  by  tyrants  and  oppressors  as  an  illus- 
tration of  the  results  of  liberty. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  FRENCH  RE  VOL  UTION.     285 

When  error  in  one  garb  has  been  detected,  Satan  only 
masks  it  in  a  different  disguise,  and  multitudes  receive  it  as 
eagerly  as  at  the  first.  When  the  people  found  Romanism 
to  be  a  deception,  and  he  could  not  through  this  agency 
lead  them  to  transgression  of  God's  law,  he  urged  them  to 
regard  all  religion  as  a  cheat,  and  the  Bible  a  fable;  and 
casting  aside  the  divine  statutes,  they  gave  themselves  up  to 
unbridled  iniquity. 

The  fatal  error  which  wrought  such  woe  for  the  inhab- 
itants of  France  was  the  ignoring  of  this  one  great  truth: 
that  true  freedom  lies  within  the  proscriptions  of  the  law  of 
God.  "  0  that  thou  hadst  hearkened  to  my  command-' 
ments!  then  had  thy  peace  been  as  a  river,  and  thy  right- 
eousness as  the  waves  of  the  sea."  "There  is.no  peace, saith 
the  Lord,  unto  the  wicked."  "  But  whoso  hearkeneth  unto 
me  shall  dwell  safely,  and  shall  be  quiet  from  fear  of  evil."1 

Atheists,  infidels,  and  apostates  oppose  and  denounce  God's 
law ;  but  the  results  of  their  influence  prove  that  the  well- 
being  of  man  is  bound  up  with  his  obedience  of  the  divine 
statutes.  Those  who  will  not  read  the  lesson  from  the  book 
of  God,  are  bidden  to  read  it  in  the  history  of  nations. 

When  Satan  wrought  through  the  Romish  Church  to 
lead  men  away  from  obedience,  his  agency  was  concealed, 
and  his  work  was  so  disguised  that  the  degradation  and 
misery  which  resulted  were  not  seen  to  be  the  fruit  of  trans- 
gression. And  his  power  was  so  far  counteracted  by  the 
working  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  that  his  purposes  were  pre- 
vented from  reaching  their  full  fruition.  The  people  did 
not  trace  the  effect  to  its  cause,  and  discover  the  source  of 
their  miseries.  But  in  the  Revolution,  the  law  of  God  was, 
openly  set  aside  by  the  national  council.  And  in  the  reign 
of  terror  which  followed,  the  working  of  cause  and  effect 
could  be  seen  by  all. 

When  France  publicly  prohibited  the  Bible,  wicked  men 
and  spirits  of  darkness  exulted  in  their  attainment  of  the 
object  so  long  desired, — a  kingdom  free  from  the  restraints 

3Isa.  48:18,22;  Prov.  1:33. 


286  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  the  law  of  God.  Because  sentence  against  an  evil  work 
was  not  speedily  executed,  therefore  the  heart  of  the  sons  of 
men  was  "fully  set  in  them  to  do  evil."1  But  the  trans- 
gression of  a  just  and  righteous  law  must  inevitably  result 
in  misery  and  ruin.  Though  not  visited  at  once  with 
judgments,  the  wickedness  of  men  was  nevertheless  surely 
working  out  their  doom.  Centuries  of  apostasy  and  crime 
had  been  treasuring  up  wrath  against  the  day  of  retribution; 
and  when  their  iniquity  was  full,  the  despisers  of  God 
learned  too  late  that  it.  is  a  fearful  thing  to  have  worn  out 
the  divine  patience.  The  restraining  Spirit  of  God,  which 
imposes  a  check  upon  the  cruel  power  of  Satan,  was  in  a 
great  measure  removed,  and  he  whose  only  delight  is  the 
wretchedness  of  men,  was  permitted  to  work  his  will.  Those 
who  had  chosen  the  service  of  rebellion,  were  left  to  reap  its 
fruits,  .until  the  land  was  filled  with  crimes  too  horrible  for 
pen  to  trace.  From  devastated  provinces  and  ruined  cities 
a  terrible  cry  was  heard, — a  cry  of  bitterest  anguish.  France 
was  shaken  as  if  by  an  earthquake.  Religion,  law,  social 
order,  the  family,  the  State,  and  the  Church, — all  were 
smitten  down  by  the  impious  hand  that  had  been  lifted 
against  the  law  of  God.  Truly  spake  the  wise  man :  "  The 
wicked  shall  fall  by  his  own  wickedness."  "  Though  a  sin- 
ner do  evil  an  hundred  times,  and  his  days  be  prolonged,  yet 
surely  I  know  that  it  shall  be  well  with  them  that  fear  God? 
which  fear  before  him ;  but  it  shall  not  be  well  with  the 
wicked."1  "They  hated  knowledge,  and  did  not  choose  the 
fear  of  the  Lord ; "  "  therefore  shall  they  eat  of  the  fruit  of 
their  own  way,  and  be  filled  with  their  own  devices."8 

God's  faithful  witnesses,  slain  by  the  blasphemous  power 
that  "  ascendeth  out  of  the  bottomless  pit,"  were  not  long  to 
remain  silent.  "  After  three  days  and  a  half,  the  Spirit  of 
life  from  God  entered  into  them,  and  they  stood  upon  their 
feet ;  and  great  fear  fell  upon  them  which  saw  them." 3  It  was 
in  1793  that  the  decree  which  prohibited  the  Bible  passed  the 

'Eccl.  8:11-13.  2Prov.  1  :29,  31.  3Rev.  11:11. 


THE  BIBLE  A  JV7>  TTTE  FRENCH  REVOLUTION.     287 

French  Assembly.  Three  years  and  a  half  later  a  resolution 
rescinding  the  decree,  and  granting  toleration  to  the  Script- 
ures, was  adopted  by  the  same  body.  The  world  stood  aghast 
at  the  enormity  of  guilt  which  had  resulted  from  a  rejection 
of  the  Sacred  Oracles,  and  men  recognized  the  necessity  of 
faith  in  God  and  his  Word  as  the  foundation  of  virtue  and 
morality.  Saith  the  Lord,  "Whom  hast  thou  reproached 
and  blasphemed?  and  against  whom  hast  thou  exalted  thy 
voice,  and  lifted  up  thine  eyes  on  high?  even  against  the 
Holy  One  of  Israel."-1  "  Therefore,  behold,  I  will  this  once 
cause  them  to  know,  I  will  cause  them  to  know  mine  hand 
and  my  might;  and  they  shall  know  that  my  name  is 
Jehovah."2 

Concerning  the  two  witnesses  the  prophet  declares  further: 
"And  they  heard  a  great  voice  from  heaven  saying  unto 
them,  Come  up  hither.  And  they  ascended  up  to  heaven  in 
a  cloud;  and  their  enemies  beheld  them."3  Since  France 
made  war  upon  God's  two  witnesses,  they  have  been  hon- 
ored as  never  before.  In  1804  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society  was  organized.  This  was  followed  by  similar  organ- 
izations, with  numerous  branches,  upon  the  continent  of 
Europe.  In  1816,  the  American  Bible  Society  was  founded. 
When  the  British  Society  was  formed,  the  Bible  had  been 
printed  and  circulated  in  fifty  tongues.  It  has  since  been 
translated  into  more  than  two  hundred  languages  and  dia- 
lects. By  the  efforts  of  Bible  societies,  since  1804,  more 
than  187,000,000  copies  of  the  Bible  have  been  circulated. 

For  the  fifty  years  preceding  1792,  little  attention  was 
given  to  the  work  of  foreign  missions.  No  new  societies 
were  formed,  and  there  were  but  few  churches  that  made 
any  effort  for  the  spread  of  Christianity  in  heathen  lands. 
But  toward  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  a  great 
change  took  place.  Men  became  dissatisfied  with  the  results 
of  rationalism,  and  realized  the  necessity  of  divine  revela- 
tion and  experimental  religion.  The  devoted  Carey,  who 

lisa.  3/:23.  2Jer.  16:21.  3  Rev.  11:  12. 


288  THE  GRKAT  CONTROVERSY. 

in  1793  became  the  first  English  missionary  to  India, 
kindled  anew  the  flame  of  missionary  effort  in  England. 
In  America,  twenty  years  later,  the  zeal  of  a  society  of  stu- 
dents, among  whom  was  Adoniram  Judson,  resulted  in  the 
formation  of  the  American  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  under 
whose  auspices  Judson  went  as  a  missionary  from  the  United 
States  to  Burmah.  From  this  time  the  work  of  foreign  mis- 
sions attained  an  unprecedented  growth. 

The  improvements  in  printing  have  given  an  impetus  to 
the  work  of  circulating  the  Bible.  The  increased  facilities 
for  communication  between  different  countries,  the  breaking 
down  of  ancient  barriers  of  prejudice  and  national  exclusive- 
ness,  and  the  loss  of  secular  power  by  the  pontiff  of  Rome, 
have  opened  the  way  for  the  entrance  of  the  Word  of  God. 
For  some  years  the  Bible  has  been  sold  without  restraint  in 
the  streets  of  Rome,  and  it  has  now  been  carried  to  every 
part  of  the  habitable  globe. 

The  infidel  Voltaire  once  boastingly  said:  "I  am  weary  of 
hearing  people  repeat  that  twelve  men  established  the  Chris- 
tian religion.  I  will  prove  that  one  man  may  suffice  to 
overthrow  it."  A  century  has  passed  since  his  death.  Mill- 
ions have  joined  in  the  war  upon  the  Bible.  But  it  is  so 
far  from  being  destroyed,  that  where  there  were  a  hundred 
in  Voltaire's  time,  there  are  now  ten  thousand,  yes,  a  hundred 
thousand  copies. of  the  Book  of  God.  In  the  words  of  an 
early  reformer  concerning  the  Christian  church,  "The  Bible 
is  an  anvil  that  has  worn  out  many  hammers."  Saith  the 
Lord, "  No  weapon  that  is  formed  against  thee  shall  prosper; 
and  every  tongue  that  shall  arise  against  thee  in  judgment 
thou  shalt  condemn." l 

"The  Word  of  our  God  shall  stand  forever."  "All  his 
commandments  are  sure.  They  stand  fast  forever  and  ever, 
and  are  done  in  truth  and  uprightness." :  Whatever  is  built 
upon  the  authority  of  man  will  be  overthrown;  but  that 
which  is  founded  upon  the  rock  of  God's  immutable  Word 
shall  stand  forever. 

>Isa.  54:17  -  Isa.  40:8;  Ps.  111:7,8. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 


THE  PILGRIM  FATHERS. 

THE  English  reformers,  while  renouncing  the  doctrines 
of  Romanism,  had  retained  many  of  its  forms.  Thus  though 
the  authority  and  the  creed  of  Rome  were  rejected,  not  a 
few  of  her  customs  and  ceremonies  were  incorporated  into 
the  worship  of  the  Church  of  England.  It  was  claimed  that 
these  things  wero  not  matters  of  conscience;  that  though 
they  were  not  commanded  in  Scripture,  and  hence  were 
non-essential,  yet  not  being  forbidden,  they  were  not  intrin- 
sically evil.  Their  observance  tended  to  narrow  the  gulf 
which  separated  the  reformed  churches  from  Rome,  and  it 
was  urged  that  they  would  promote  the  acceptance  of  the 
Protestant  faith  by  Romanists. 

To  the  conservative  and  compromising,  these  arguments 
seemed  conclusive.  But  there  was  another  class  that  did 
not  so  judge.  The  fact  that  these  customs  tended  to  bridge 
the  chasm  between  Rome  and  the  Reformation,  was  in  their 
view  a  conclusive  argument  against  retaining  them.  They 
looked  upon  them  as  badges  of  the  slavery  from  which  they 
had  been  delivered,  and  to  which  they  had  no  disposition  to 
return.  They  reasoned  that  God  has  in  his  Word  estab- 
lished the  regulations  governing  his  worship,  and  that  men 
are  not  at  liberty  to  add  to  these  or  to  detract  from  them. 
The  very  beginning  of  the  great  apostasy  was  in  seeking  to 
supplement  the  authority  of  God  by  that  of  the  church. 
Rome  began  by  enjoining  what  God  had  not  forbidden,  and 
she  ended  by  forbidding  what  he  had  explicitly  enjoined. 

Many  earnestly  desired  to  return  to  the  purity  and  sim- 
plicity which  characterized  the  primitive  church.  They 

(289) 


290  THE  GREAT  CONTR 


regarded  many  of  the  established  customs  of  the  English 
church  as  monuments  of  idolatry,  and  they  could  riot  in 
conscience  unite  in  her  worship.  But  the  church,  being- 
supported  by  the  civil  authority,  would  permit  no  dissent 
from  her  forms.  Attendance  upon  her  service  was  required' 
by  law,  and  unauthorized  assemblies  for  religious  worship 
were  prohibited,  under  penalty  of  imprisonment,  exile  and 
death. 

At  the  opening  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  monarch 
who  had  just  ascended  the  throne  of  England  declared  his 
determination  to  make  the  Puritans  "conform,  or  harry 
them  out  of  the  land,  or  else  worse."  Hunted,  persecuted, 
and  imprisoned,  they  could  discern  in  the  future  no  promise 
of  better  days,  and  many  yielded  to  the  conviction  that  for 
such  as  would  serve  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  their 
conscience,  "England  had  ceased  forever  to  be  a  habitable 
spot."  Some  at  last  determined  to  seek  refuge  in  Holland. 
Difficulties,  losses,  and  imprisonment  were  encountered. 
Their  purposes  were  thwarted,  and  they  were  betrayed  into 
the  hands  of  their  enemies.  But  steadfast  perseverance 
finally  conquered,  and  they  found  shelter  on  the  friendly 
shores  of  the  Dutch  Republic. 

In  their  flight  they  had  left  their  houses,  their  goods,  and 
their  means  of  livelihood.  They  were  strangers  in  a  strange 
land,  among  a  people  of  different  language  and  customs. 
They  were  forced  to  resort  to  new  and  untried  occupations 
to  earn  their  bread.  Middle-aged  men,  who  had  spent  their 
lives  in  tilling  the  soil,  had  now  to  learn  mechanical  trades. 
But  they  cheerfully  accepted  the  situation,  and  lost-no  time 
in  idleness  or  repining.  Though  often  pinched  with  pov- 
ertv,  they  thanked  God  for  the  blessings  which  were  still 
granted  them,  and  found  their  joy  in  unmolested  spiritual 
communion.  '  They  knew  they  were  pilgrims,  and  looked 
not  much  on  those  things,  but  lifted  up  their  eyes  to 
Heaven,  their  dearest  country,  and  quieted  their  spirits." 

In  the  midst  of  exile  and  hardship,  their  love  and  faith 


THE  PILGRIM  FATHERS.  291 


waxed  strong.  They  trusted  the  Lord's  promises,  and  lie 
did  not  fail  them  in  time  of  need.  His  angels  were  by  their 
side/  to  encourage  and  support  them.  And  when  God's 
hand  seemed  pointing  them  across  the  sea,  to  a  land  where 
they  might  found  for  themselves  a  State,  and  leave  to  their 
children  the  precious  heritage  of  religious  liberty,  they 
went  forward,  without  shrinking,  in  the  path  of  Providence. 

God  had  permitted  trials  to  come  upon  his  people  to  pre- 
pare them  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  gracious  purpose 
toward  them.  The  church  had  been  brought  low,  that  she 
might  be  exalted.  God  was  about  to  display  his  power  in 
her  behalf,  to  give  to  the  world  another  evidence  that  he 
will  not  forsake  those  who  trust  in  him.  He  had  overruled 
events  to  cause  the  wrath  of  Satan  and  the  plots  of  evil  men 
to  advance  his  glory,  and  to  bring  his  people  to  a  place  of 
security.  Persecution  and  exile  were  opening  the  way  to 
freedom. 

When  first  constrained  to  separate  from  the  English  church, 
the  Puritans  had  joined  themselves  together  by  a  solemn 
covenant,  as  the  Lord's  free  people,  "to  walk  in  all  his  ways, 
made  known  or  to  be  made  known  to  them."  Here  was 
the  true  spirit  of  reform,  the  vital  principle  of  Protestantism. 
It  was  with  this  purpose  that  the  Pilgrims  departed  from 
Holland  to  find  a  home  in  the  New  World.  John  Robinson, 
their  pastor,  who  was  providentially  prevented  from  accom- 
panying them,  in  his  farewell  address  to  the  exiles  said: — 

u  Brethren,  we  are  now  erelong  to"  part  asunder,  and  the 
Lord  knoweth  whether  I  shall  live  ever  to  see  your  faces 
more;  but  whether  the  Lord  hath  appointed  that  or  not,  I 
charge  you  before  God  and  his  blessed  angels  to  follow  me  no 
farther  than  I  have  followed  Christ.  If  God  should  reveal 
anything  to  you  by  any  other  instrument  of  his,  be  as  ready 
to  receive  it  as  you  ever  were  to  receive  any  truth  by  my  min- 
istry; for  I  am  very  confident  that  the  Lord  hath  more  truth 
and  light  yet  to  break  forth  out  of  his  Holy  Word.  For  my 
part,  I  cannot  sufficiently  bewail  the  condition  of  the  reformed 


292  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


churches,  who  are  come  to  a  period  in  religion,  and  will  go 
no  farther  than  the  instruments  of  their  reformation.  The 
Lutherans  cannot  be  drawn  to  go  any  farther  than  what 
Luther  saw,  and  the  Calvinists,  you  see,  stick  fast  where  they 
were  left  by  that  great  man  of  God,  who  yet  saw  not  all 
things.  This  is  a  misery  much  to  be  lamented ;  for  though 
they  were  burning  and  shining  lights  in  their  time,  yet  they 
penetrated  not  into  the  whole  counsel  of  God,  but  were  they 
now  living,  would  be  as  willing  to  embrace  further  light  as 
that  which  they  first  received. 

"Remember  your  church  covenant,  in  which  you  have 
agreed  to  walk  in  all  the  ways  of  the  Lord,  made  known 
or  to  be  made  known  unto  you.  Remember  your  promise 
and  covenant  with  God  and  with  one  another,  to  receive 
whatever  light  and  truth  shall  be  made  known  to  you  from 
his  written  Word.  But,  withal,  take  heed,  I  beseech  you, 
what  you  receive  as  truth.  Examine  it,  consider  it,  compare 
it  with  other  scriptures  of  truth  before  you  receive  it;  for 
it  is  not  possible  that  the  Christian  \vorld  should  come 
so  lately  out  of  such  thick  antichristian  darkness,  and  that 
perfection  of  knowledge  should  break  forth  at  once/! 

It  was  the  desire  for  liberty  of  conscience  that  inspired  the 
Pilgrims  to  brave  the  perils  of  the  long  journey  across  the 
sea,  to  endure  the  hardships  and  dangers  of  the  wilderness, 
and  with  God's  blessing  to  lay,  on  the  shores  of  America,  the 
foundation  of  a  mighty  nation.  Yet  honest  and  God-fearing 
as  they  were,  the  Pilgrims  did  not  yet  comprehend  the  great 
principle  of  religious  toleration.  The  freedom  which  they 
sacrificed  so  much  to  secure  for  themselves,  they  were  not 
equally  ready  to  grant  to  others.  "Very  few,  even  of  tlio 
foremost  thinkers  and  moralists  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
had  any  just  conception  of  that  grand  principle,  the  out- 
growth of  the  New  Testament,  which  acknowledges  God  as 
the  sole  judge  of  human  faith."  The  doctrine  that  God  has 
committed  to  the  church  the  right  to  control  the  conscience, 
and  to  define  and  punish  heresy,  is  one  of  the  most  deeply 


THE  PILGRIM  FA  THERS.  293 

rooted  of  papal  errors.  While  the  reformers  rejected  the 
creed  of  Rome,  they  were  not  entirely  free  from  her  spirit  of 
intolerance.  The  dense  darkness  in  which,  through  the 
long  ages  of  her  rule,  popery  had  enveloped  all  Christendom, 
had  not  even  yet  been  wholly  dissipated.  Said  one  of  the 
leading  ministers  in  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay:  "It 
was  toleration  that  made  the  world  antichristian ;  and  the 
church  never  took  harm  by  the  .  punishment  of  heretics." 
The  regulation  was  adopted  by  the  colonists,  that  only 
church-members  should  have  a  voice  in  the  civil  govern- 
ment. A  kind  of  State  church  was  formed,  all  the  people 
being  required  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  the  clergy,  and 
the  magistrates  being  authorized  to  suppress  heresy.  Thus 
the  secular  power  was  in  the  hands  of  the  church.  It  was 
not  long  before  these  measures  led  to  the  inevitable  result — 
persecution. 

Eleven  years  after  the  planting  of  the  first  colony,  Roger 
Williams  came  to  the  New  World.  Like  the  early  Pilgrims, 
he  came  to  enjoy  religious  freedom;  but  unlike  them,  he 
saw — what  so  few  in  his  time  had  yet  seen — that  this  free- 
dom was  the  inalienable  right  of  all,  whatever  might  be 
their  creed.  He  was  an  earnest  seeker  for  truth,  with  Robin- 
son holding  it  impossible  that  all  the  light  from  God's  Word 
had  yet  been  received.  Williams  "  was  the  first  person  in 
modern  Christendom  to  assert,  in  its  plenitude,  the  doctrine 
of  the  liberty  of  conscience,  the  equality  of  opinions  before 
the  law."  He  declared  it  to  be  the  duty  of  the  magistrate 
to  restrain  crime,  but  never  to  control  the  conscience.  "  The 
public  or  the  magistrates  may  decide,"  he  said,  "what  is 
due  from  men  to  men,  but  when  they  attempt  to  prescribe 
a  man's  duty  to  God,  they  are  out  of  place,  and  there  can 
be  no  safety;  for  it  is  clear  that  if  the  magistrate  has  the 
power,  he  may  decree  one  set  of  opinions  or  beliefs  to-day 
and  another  to-mojrow;  as  has  been  done  in  England  by 
different  kings  and  queens,  and  by  the  different  popes  and 
councils  in  the  Roman  Church;  so  that  belief  would  be- 
come a  heap  of  confusion." 


294  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Attendance  at  the  services  of  the  established  church  was 
required  under  a  penalty  of  fine  or  imprisonment.  "Will- 
iams reprobated  the  law;  the  worst  statute  of  the  English 
code  was  that  which  did  but  enforce  attendance  upon  the 
parish  church.  To  compel  men  to  unite  with  those  of  a 
different  creed,  he  regarded  as  an  open  violation  of  their 
natural  rights;  to  drag  to  public  worship  the  irreligious  and 
the  unwilling,  seemed  like  requiring  hypocrisy.  'No  one,' 
he  said,  'should  be  forced  to  worship,  or  to  maintain  a 
worship,  against  his  own  consent.'  'What!'  exclaimed  his 
antagonist,  amazed  at  his  tenets,  '  is  not  the  laborer  worthy 
of  his  hire?'  'Yes,'  replied  he,  'from  those  who  hire  him.'" 

Roger  Williams  was  respected  and  beloved  as  a  faithful 
minister,  a  man  of  rare  gifts,  of  unbending  integrity  and 
true  benevolence;  yet  his  steadfast  denial  of  the  right  of 
civil  magistrates  to  authority  over  the  church,  and  his 
demand  for  religious  liberty,  could  not  be  tolerated.  The 
application  of  this  new  doctrine,  it  was  urged,  would  "sub- 
vert the  fundamental  state  and  government  of  the  country." 
He  was  sentenced  to  banishment  from  the  colonies,  and 
finally,  to  avoid  arrest,  he  was  forced  to  flee,  amid  the  cold 
and  storms  of  winter,  into  the  unbroken  forest. 

''For  fourteen  weeks,"  he  says, "  I  was  sorely  tossed  in  a  bit- 
ter season,  not  knowing  what  bread  or  bed  did  mean."  "  But 
the  ravens  fed  me  in  the  wilderness; "  and  a  hollow  tree  often 
served  him  for  a  shelter.  Thus  he  continued  his  painful 
flight  through  the  snow  and  the  trackless  forest,  until  he 
found  refuge  with  an  Indian  tribe  whose  confidence  and 
affection  he  had  won  while  endeavoring  to  teach  them  the 
truths  of  the  gospel. 

Making  his  way  at  last,  after  months  of  change  and  wan- 
dering, to  the  shores  of  Narragansett  Bay,  he  there  laid  the 
foundation  of  the  first  State  of  modern  times  that  in  the  full- 
est sense  recognized  the  right  of  religious  freedom.  The 
fundamental  principle  of  Roger  Williams'  colony,  was  "that 
every  man  should  have  the  right  to  worship  God  according 


THE  PIL  GRIM  FA  THERS.  295 


to  the  light  of  his  conscience."  His  little  State,  Rhode 
Island,  became  the  asylum  of  the  oppressed,  and  it  increased 
and  prospered  until  its  foundation  principles — civil  and 
religious  liberty — became  the  corner-stones  of  the  American 
Republic. 

In  that  grand  old  document  which  our  forefathers  set  forth 
as  their  bill  of  rights — the  Declaration  of  Independence — 
they  declared :  "  We  hold  these  truths  to  be  self-evident,  that 
all  men  are  created  equal ;  that  they  are  endowed  by  their 
Creator  with  certain  unalienable  rights;  that  among  these 
are  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness."  And  the 
Constitution  guarantees,  in  the  most  explicit  terms,  the 
inviolability  of  conscience :  "  No  religious  test  shall  ever  be 
required  as  a  qualification  to  any  office  of  public  trust  under 
the  United  States."  "  Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting 
an  establishment  of  religion,  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise 
thereof." 

"The  framers  of  the  Constitution  recognized  the  eternal 
principle  that  man's  relation  to  his  God  is  above  human 
legislation,  and  his  right  of  conscience  inalienable.  Reason- 
ing was  not  necessary  to  establish  this  truth;  we  are  con- 
scious of  it  in  our  own  bosom.  It  is  this  consciousness, 
which,  in  defiance  of  human  laws,  has  sustained  so  many 
martyrs  in  tortures  and  flames.  They  felt  that  their  duty  to 
God  was  superior  to  human  enactments,  and  that  man  could 
exercise  no  authority  over  their  consciences.  It  is  an  inborn 
principle  which  nothing  can  eradicate." 

As  the  tidings  spread  through  the  countries  of  Europe, 
of  a  land  where  every  man  might  enjoy  the  fruit  of  his  own 
labor,  and  obey  the  convictions  of  his  conscience,  thousands 
flocked  to  the  shores  of  the  New  World.  Colonies  rapidly 
multiplied.  "  Massachusetts,  by  special  law ,  offered  free  wel- 
come and  aid,  at  the  public  cost,  to  Christians  of  any  nation- 
ality who  might  fly  beyond  the  Atlantic  'to  escape  from  wars 
or  famine,  or  the  oppression  of  their  persecutors.'  Thus  the 
fugitive  and  the  down-trodden  were,  by  statute,  made  the 


296  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

guests  of  the  commonwealth."  In  twenty  years  from  the 
first  landing  at  Plymouth,  as  many  thousand  Pilgrims  were 
settled  in  New  England. 

To  secure  the  object  which  they  sought,  "they  were  con- 
tent to  earn  a  bare  subsistence  by  a  life  of  frugality  and 
toil.  They  asked  nothing  from  the  soil  but  the  reasonable 
returns  of  their  own  labor.  No  golden  vision  threw  a 
deceitful  halo  around  their  path.  .  .  .  They  were  con- 
tent with  the  slow  but  steady  progress  of  their  social  polity. 
They  patiently  endured  the  privations  of  the  wilderness, 
watering  the  tree  of  liberty  with  their  tears,  and  with  the 
sweat  of  their  brow,  till  it  took  deep  root  in  the  land." 

The  Bible  was  held  as  the  foundation  of  faith,  the  source 
of  wisdom,  and  the  charter  of  liberty.  Its  principles  were 
diligently  taught  in  the  home,  in  the  school,  and  in  the 
church,  and  its  fruits  were  manifest  in  thrift,  intelligence, 
purity,  and  temperance.  One  might  be  for  years  a  dweller 
in  the  Puritan  settlements,  and  not  "  see  a  drunkard,  nor 
hear  an  oath,  nor  meet  a  beggar."  It  was  demonstrated 
that  the  principles  of  the  Bible  are  the  surest  safeguards  of 
national  greatness.  The  feeble  and  isolated  colonies  grew 
to  a  confederation  of  powerful  States,  and  the  world  marked 
with  wonder  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  "a  church  with- 
out a  pope,  and  a  State  without  a  king." 

But  continually  increasing  numbers  were  attracted  to  the 
shores  of  America,  actuated  by  motives  widely  different  from 
those  of  the  first  Pilgrims,  Though  the  primitive  faith  and 
purity  exerted  a  widespread  and  moulding  power,  yet  its 
influence  became  less  and  less  as  the  numbers  increased  of 
those  who  sought  only  worldly  advantage. 

The  regulation  adopted  by  the  early  colonists,  of  per- 
mitting only  members  of  the  church  to  vote  or  to  hold 
office  in  the  civil  government,  led  to  most  pernicious  results. 
This  measure  had  been  accepted  as  a  means  of  preserv- 
ing the  purity  of  the  State,  but  it  resulted  in  the  corrup- 
tion of  the  church.  A  profession  of  religion  being  the 


THE  PILGRIM  FA  THERS.  297 

condition  of  suffrage  and  office-holding,  many,  actuated 
solely  by  motives  of  worldly  policy,  united  with  the  church, 
without  a  change  of  heart.  Thus  the  churches  came  to 
consist,  to  a  considerable  extent,  of  unconverted  persons; 
and  even  in  the  ministry  were  those  who  not  only  held 
errors  of  doctrine,  but  who  were  ignorant  of  the  renewing 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Thus  again  was  demonstrated 
the  evil  results,  so  often  witnessed  in  the  history  of  the 
church  from  the  days  of  Constantine  to  the  present,  of 
attempting  to  build  up  the  church  by  the  aid  of  the  State, 
of  appealing  to  the  secular  power  in  support  of  the  gospel  of 
Him  who  declared,  "My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world."1 
The  union  of  the  church  with  the  State,  be  the  degree  never 
so  slight,  while  it  may  appear  to  bring  the  world  nearer  to 
the  church,  does  in  reality  but  bring  the  church  nearer  to 
the  world. 

The  great  principle  so  nobly  advocated  by  Robinson  and 
Roger  Williams,  that  truth  is  progressive,  that  Christians 
should  stand  •  ready  to  accept  all  the  light  which  may  shine 
from  God's  Holy  Word,  was  lost  sight  of  by  their  descend- 
ants. The  Protestant  churches  of  America — and  those  of 
Europe  as  well — so  highly  favored  in  receiving  the  blessings 
of  the  Reformation,  failed  to  press  forward  in  the  path  of 
reform.  Though  a  few  faithful  men  arose,  from  time  to 
time,  to  proclaim  new  truth,  and  expose  long-cherished  error, 
the  majority,  like  the  Jews  in  Christ's  day,  or  the  papists  in 
the  time  of  Luther,  were  content  to  believe  as  their  fathers 
had  believed,  and  to  live  as  they  had  lived.  Therefore 
religion  again  degenerated  into  formalism ;  and  errors  and 
superstitions  which  would  have  been  cast  aside  had  the 
church  continued  to  walk  in  the  light  of  God's  Word,  were 
retained  and  cherished.  Thus  the  spirit  inspired  by  the 
Reformation  gradually  died  out,  until  there  was  almost  as 
great  need  of  reform  in  the  Protestant  churches  as  in  the 
Roman  Church  in  the  time  of  Luther.  There  was  the  same 
worldliness  and  spiritual  stupor,  a  similar  reverence  for  the 

lJohn  18:36. 


298  THL   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


opinions  of  men,  and  substitution  of  human  theories  for  the 
teachings  of  God's  Word. 

The  wide  circulation  of  the  Bible  in  the  early  part  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  and  the  great  light  thus  shed  upon  the 
world,  was  not  followed  by  a  corresponding  advance  in 
knowledge  of  revealed  truth,  or  in  experimental  religion. 
Satan  could  not,  as  in  former  ages,  keep  God's  Word  from 
the  people ;  it  had  been  placed  within  the  reach  of  all ;  but 
in  order  still  to  accomplish  his  object,  he  led  many  to  value 
it  but  lightly.  Men  neglected  to  search  the  Scriptures,  and 
thus  they  continued  to  accept  false  interpretations,  arid  to 
cherish  doctrines  which  had  no  foundation  in  the  Bible. 

Seeing  the  failure  of  his  efforts  to  crush  out  the  truth  by 
persecution,  Satan  had  again  resorted  to  the  plan  of  com- 
promise which  led  to  the  great  apostasy  and  the  formation 
of  the  Church  of  Rome.  He  had  induced  Christians  to 
ally  themselves,  not  now  with  pagans,  but  with  those  who 
by  their  devotion  to  the  things  of  this  world  had  proved 
themselves  to  be  as  truly  idolaters  as  were  the  worshipers  of 
graven  images.  And  the  results  of  this  union  were  no  less 
pernicious  now  than  in  former  ages;  pride  and  extravagance 
were  fostered  under  the  guise  of  religion,  and  the  churches 
became  corrupted.  Satan  continued  to  pervert  the  doctrines 
of  the  Bible,  and  traditions  that  were  to  ruin  millions  were 
taking  deep  root.  The  church  was  upholding  and  defending 
these  traditions,  instead  of 'contending  for  "the  faith  which 
was  once  delivered  to  the  saints."  Thus  were  degraded  the 
principles  for  which  the  reformers  had  done  and  suffered 
so  much. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING. 

ONE  of  the  most  solemn  and  yet  most  glorious  truths 
revealed  in  the  Bible  is  that  of  Christ's  second  coming, 
to  complete  the  great  work  of  redemption.  To  God's  pil- 
grim people,  so  long  left  to  sojourn  in  "the  region  and 
shadow  of  death,"  a  precious,  joy-inspiring  hope  is  given 
in  the  promise  of  His  appearing,  who  is  "  the  resurrection 
and  the  life,"  to  "bring  home  again  his  banished."  The 
doctrine  of  the  second  advent  is  the  very  key-note  of  the 
sacred  Scriptures.  From  the  day  when  the  first  pair  turned 
their  sorrowing  steps  from  Eden,  the  children  of  faith  have 
waited  the  coming  of  the  Promised  One  to  break  the  destroy- 
er's power  and  bring  them  again  to  the  lost  Paradise.  Holy 
men  of  old  looked  forward  to  the  advent  of  the  Messiah  in 
glory,  as  the  consummation  of  their  hope.  Enoch,  only  the 
seventh  in  descent  from  them  that  dwelt  in  Eden,  he  who 
for  three  centuries  on  earth  walked  with  his  God,  was  per- 
mitted to  behold  from  afar  the  coming  of  the  Deliverer. 
'•  Behold,"  he  declaied,  "the  Lord  corneth  with  ten  thousands 
of  his  saints,  to  execute  judgment  upon  all."  l  The  patriarch 
Job  in  the  night  of  his  affliction  exclaimed  with  unshaken 
trust:  "I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth,  and  that  he  shall 
stand  at  the  latter  day  upon  the  earth ;  .  .  .  in  my  flesh 
shall  I  see  God,  whom  I  shall  see  for  myself,  and  mine  eyes 
shall  behold,  and  not  another." a 

The  coming  of  Christ  to  usher  in  the  reign  of  righteous- 
ness, has  inspired  the  most  sublime  and  impassioned  utter- 
ances of  the  sacred  writers.  The  poets  and  prophets  of  the 

UudeM,  15.  2  Job  19: 25-27. 

23  (299) 


300  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Bible  have  dwelt  upon  it  in  words  glowing  with  celestial 
fire.  The  psalmist  sung  of  the  power  and  majesty  of  Israel's 
King:  "Out  of  Zion,  the  perfection  of  beauty,  God  hath 
shiued.  Our  God  shall  come,  and  shall  not  keep  silence. 
.  .  .  He  shall  call  to  the  heavens  from  above,  and  to  the 
earth,  that  he  may  judge  his  people."1  "Let  the  heavens 
rejoice,  and  let  the  earth  be  glad"  "before  the  Lord;  for  he 
cometh,  for  he  cometh  to  judge  the  earth:  he  shall  judge  the 
world  with  righteousness,  and  the  people  with  his  truth." '" 

Said  the  prophet  Isaiah:  "Awake  and  sing,  ye  that  dwell 
in  dust;  for  thy  dew  is  as  the  dew  of  herbs,  and  the  earth 
shall  cast  out  the  dead."  "Thy  dead  men  shall  live,  to- 
gether with  my  dead  body  shall  they  arise."  "  He  will  swal. 
low  up  death  in  victory ;  and  the  Lord  God  will  wipe  away 
tears  from  off  all  faces;  and  the  rebuke  of  his  people  shall 
he  take  away  from  off  all  the  earth ;  for  the  Lord  hath  spoken 
it.  And  it  shall  be  said  in  that  day,  Lo,  this  is  our  God; 
we  have  waited  far  him,  and  he  will  save  us.  This  is  the 
Lord ;  we  have  waited  for  him,  we  will  be  glad  and  rejoice 
in  his  salvation." ! 

And  Habakkuk,  rapt  in  holy  vision,  beheld  His  appearing. 
"God  came  from  Tern  an,  and  the  Holy  One  from  Mount 
Paran.  His  glory  covered  the  heavens,  and  the  earth  was 
full  of  his  praise.  And  his  brightness  was  as  the  light." 
"He  stood,  and  measured  the  earth;  he  beheld,  and  drove 
asunder  the  nations;  and  the  everlasting  mountains  were 
scattered,  the  perpetual  hills  did  bow;  his  ways  are  ever- 
lasting." "Thou  didst  ride  upon  thine  horses  and  thy  char- 
iots of  salvation."  "  The  mountains  saw  thee,  and  they  trem- 
bled. .  .  The  deep  uttered  his  voice,  and  lifted  up  his 
hands  on  high.  The  sun  and  moon  stood  still  in  their  habi- 
tation; at  the  light  of  thine  arrows  they  went,  and  at  the 
shining  of  thy  glittering  spear."  "Thou  wen  test  forth  for 
the  salvation  of  thy  people,  even  for  salvation  with  thine 
anointed."  * 

1  Ps.  50:2-4  'Ps.  96:11,13. 

3Isa.26:19;  25:8,9.  « Hub.  3:3,  4,  6,  8,  10,  11,13. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING.  301 


When  the  Saviour  was  about  to  be  separated  from  his 
disciples,  he  comforted  them  in  their  sorrow  with  the  assur- 
ance that  he  would  come  again :  "  Let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled."  "  In  my  Father's  house  are  many  mansions." 
"  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you.  And  if  I  go  and  prepare 
a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and  receive  you  unto 
myself."1  "The  Son  of  man  shall  come  in  his  glory,  and 
all  the  holy  angels  with  him.  Then  shall  he  sit  upon  the 
throne  of  his  glory,  and  before  him  shall  be  gathered  all 
nations."2 

The  angels  who  lingered  upon  Olivet  after  Christ's  ascen- 
sion, repeated  to  the  disciples  the  promise  of  his  return: 
"  This  same  Jesus,  which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven, 
shall  so  come  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen  him  go  into 
heaven."3  And  the  apostle  Paul,  speaking  by  the  Spirit  of 
inspiration,  testified :  "  The  Lord  himself  shall  descend  from 
heaven  with  a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel,  and 
with  the  trump  of  God."4  Says  the  prophet  of  Patmos: 
"Behold,  he  cometh  with  clouds;  and  every  eye  shall  see 
him."5 

About  his  coming  cluster  the  glories  of  that  "restitution 
of  all  things,  wThich  God  hath  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  all 
his  holy  prophets  since  the  world  began."6  Then  the  long- 
continued  rule  of  evil  shall  be  broken;  "the  kingdoms  of 
this  world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord,  and  of  his 
Christ;  and  he  shall  reign  forever  and  ever."7  "The  glory 
of  the  Lord  shall  be  revealed,  and  all  flesh  shall  see  it 
together."  "The  Lord  God  will  cause  righteousness  and 
praise  to  spring  forth  before  all  the  nations."  He  shall  be 
"for  a  crown  of  glory,  and  for  a  diadem  of  beauty,  unto  the 
residue  of  his  people."8 

It  is  then  that  the  peaceful  and  long-desired  kingdom  of 
the  Messiah  shall  be  established  under  the  whole  heaven. 
"  The  Lord  shall  comfort  Zion;  he  will  comfort  all  her  waste 
1  John  14 : 1-3.  2  Matt.  25 : 31 ,  32.  ''Acts  1:11. 

4 1  Thess.  4 : 16.  5  Rev.  1 : 7.  'Acts  3 :  21. 

'Rev.  11:15.  8Isa.  40:5;  61:11;  28:5. 


302  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


places,  and  he  will  make  her  wilderness  like  Eden,  and  her 
desert  like  the  garden  of  the  Lord."  "  The  glory  of  Lebanon 
shall  he  given  unto  it,  the  excellency  of  Carmel  and  Sharon." 
"  Thou  shalt  no  more  be  termed  Forsaken ;  neither  shall  thy 
land  any  more  be  termed  Desolate ;  but  thou  shalt  be  called 
My  Delight,  and  thy  land  Beulah."  "As  the  bridegroom 
rejoiceth  over  the  bride,  so  shall  thy  God  rejoice  over  thee." 1 

The  coming  of  the  Lord  has  been  in  all  ages  the  hope  of 
his  true  followers.  The  Saviour's  parting  promise  upon 
Olivet,  that  he  would  come  again,  lighted  up  the  future  for 
his  disciples,  filling  their  hearts  with  joy  and  hope,  that 
sorrow  could  not  quench,  nor  trials  dim.  Amid  suffering 
and  persecution,  "  the  appearing  of  the  great  God  and  our 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ "  was  the  "  blessed  hope."  When  the 
Thessalonian  Christians  were  filled  with  grief  as  they  buried 
their  loved  ones,  who  had  hoped  to  live  to  witness  the  com- 
ing of  the  Lord,  Paul,  their  teacher,  pointed  them  to  the 
resurrection,  to  take  place  at  the  Saviour's  advent.  Then 
the  dead  in  Christ  should  rise,  and  together  with  the  living 
be  caught  up  to  meet  the  Lord  in  the  air.  "And  so,"  he 
said,  "  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord.  Wherefore  comfort 
one  another  with  these  words." 2 

On  rocky  Patmos  the  beloved  disciple  hears  the  promise, 
"Surely,  I  come  quickly,"  and  his  longing  response  voices 
the  prayer  of  the  church  in  all  her  pilgrimage,  "  Even  so, 
come,  Lord  Jesus."3 

From  the  dungeon,  the  stake,  the  scaffold,  where  saints 
and  martyrs  witnessed  for  the  truth,  comes  down  the  cent- 
uries the  utterance  of  their  faith  and  hope.  "Being  assured 
of  Christ's  personal  resurrection,  and  consequently  of  their 
own  at  his  coming,  for  this  cause,"  says  one  of  these  Chris- 
tians, "they  despised  death,  and  were  found  to  be  above  it." 
They  were  willing  to  go  down  to  the  grave,  that  they  "  might 
rise  free."  They  looked  for  the  "  Lord  to  come  from  Heaven 
in  the  clouds  with  the  glory  of  his  Father,"  "  bringing  to  the 

1  Isa.  51  : 3  ;  35  : 2  ;  62  :  4,  5  (margin).  *  1  Thess.  4  : 16-18. 

»  Rev.  22  :  20. 


HERALDS  OF  TTJK  WORKING.  .°03 


just  the  times  of  the  kingdom."  The  \Valdrnsrs  cherished 
the  same  faith.  Wycliffe  looked  forward  to  the  Redeemer's 
appearing  as  the  hope  of  the  church. 

Luther  declared:  "I  persuade  myself  verily,  that  the  day 
of  Judgment  will  not  be  absent  full  three  hundred  years. 
God  will  not,  cannot,  suffer  this  wicked  world  much  longer." 
"Tne  great  day  is  drawing  near  in  which  the  kingdom  of 
abominations  shall  be  overthrown." 

"This  aged  world  is  not  far  from  its  end,"  said  Melanc- 
thon.  Calvin  bids  Christians  "not  to  hesitate,  ardently 
desiring  the.  day  of  Christ's  coming  as  of  all  events  most 
auspicious;"  and  declares  that  "the  whole  family  of  the 
faithful  will  keep  in  view  that  day."  "  We  must  hunger 
after  Christ,  we  must  seek,  contemplate,"  he  says,  "till  the 
dawning  of  that  great  day,  when  our  Lord  will  fully  mani- 
fest the  glory  of  his  kingdom." 

"Has  not  our  Lord  Jesus  carried  up  our  flesh  into 
Heaven?"  said  Knox,  the  Scotch  reformer,  "and  shall  he 
not  return?  We  know  that  he  shall  return,  and  that  with 
expedition."  Ridley  and  Latimer,  who  laid  down  their 
lives  for  the  truth,  looked  in  faith  for  the  Lord's  coming. 
Ridley  wrote:  ".The  world  without  doubt — this  I  do  believe, 
and  therefore  I  say  it — draws  to  an  end.  Let  us  with  John, 
the  servant  of  God,  cry  in  our  hearts  unto  our  Saviour 
Christ,  Come,  Lord  Jesus,  come." 

"  The  thoughts  of  the  coming  of  the  Lord,"  said  Baxter, 
"are  most  sweet  and  joyful  to  me."  "It  is  the  work  of  faith 
and  the  character  of  his  saints  to  love  his  appearing  and  to 
look  for  that  blessed  hope."  "  If  death  be  the  last  enemy  to 
be  destroyed  at  the  resurrection,  we  may  learn  how  earnestly 
believers  should  long  and  pray  for  the  second  coming  of 
Christ,  when  this  full  and  final  conquest  shall  be  made." 
"  This  is  the  day  that  all  believers  should  long,  and  hope, 
and  wait  for,  as  being  the  accomplishment  of  all  the  work 
of  their  redemption,  and  all  the  desires  and  endeavors  of 
their  souls."  "  Hasten,  O  Lord,  this  blessed  day ! "  Such  was 


304  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  hope  of  the  apostolic  church,  of  the  "church  in  the  wil- 
derness," and  of  the  reformers. 

Prophecy  not  only  foretells  the  manner  and  object  of 
Christ's  coming,  but  presents  tokens  by  which  men  are  to 
know  when  it  is  near.  Said  Jesus:  "There  shall  be  signs 
in  the  sun,  and  in  the  moon,  and  in  the  stars."1  "The  sun 
shall  be  darkened,  and  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light, 
and  the  stars  of  heaven  shall  fall,  and  the  powers  that  are 
in  heaven  shall  be  shaken.  And  then  shall  they  see 
the  Son  of  man  coming  in  the  clouds  with  great  power  and 
glory." 2  The  Revelator  thus  describes  the  first  of  the  signs 
to  precede  the  second  advent:  "There  was  a  great  earth- 
quake; and  the  sun  became  black  as  sackcloth  of  hair,  and 
the  moon  become  as  blood."3 

These  signs  were  witnessed  before  the  opening  of  the  pres- 
ent century.  In  fulfillment  of  this  prophecy  there  occurred, 
in  the  year  1755,  the  most  terrible  earthquake  that  has  ever 
been  recorded.  Though  commonly  known  as  the  earth- 
quake of  Lisbon,  it  extended  to  the  greater  part  of  Europe, 
Africa,  and  America.  It  was  felt  in  Greenland,  in  the  West 
Indies,  in  the  island  of  Madeira,  in  Norway  and  Sweden, 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  It  pervaded  an  extent  of  not 
less  than  four  million  square  miles.  In  Africa  the  shock 
was  almost  as  severe  as  in  Europe.  A  great  part  of  Algiers 
was  destroyed ;  and  a  short  distance  from  Morocco,  a  village 
containing  eight  or  ten  thousand  inhabitants  was  swallowed 
up.  A  vast  wave  swept  over  the  coast  of  Spain  and  Africa, 
engulfing  cities,  and  causing  great  destruction. 

It  was  in  Spain  and  Portugal  that  the  shock  manifested 
its  extreme  violence.  At  Cadiz  the  inflowing  wave  was  said 
to  be  sixty  feet  high.  Mountains — some  of  the  largest  in 
Portugal — "were  impetuously  shaken,  as  it  were  from  the 
very  foundation;  and  some  of  them  opened  at  their  sum- 
mits, which  were  split  and  rent  in  a  wonderful  niannrr, 
huge  masses  of  them  being  thrown  down  into  the  subjacent 

1  Luke  21 :  25.  'Mark  13  :  24-26.  3  Rev.  6  : 12. 


///'/;  I/  OS  OF  /'///•:  MORNING,  305 


valleNs.      Klames    are    related     to    have     issued     from     these 

mountains." 

Al  Lisbon  "a  sound  of  I bunder  was  heard  underground, 
and  immediately  afterward  a  violent  shock  threw  down  the 
greater  par!  of  that  city.  In  (lie  course  of  about  six  minutes 
sixty  thousand  persons  perished.  The  sea,  lirst,  retired,  and 
laid  the  bar  dry,  it  then  rolled  in,  rising  lil'tv  fed,  above  its 
ordinary  level."  "The  most  extraordinary  circumstance 
which  oeeurred  at  Lisbon  during  the  eatast  rophe,  was  the 
subsidence  of  the  new  quay,  built  entirely  of  marble,  at  an 
immense  expense.  A  invat  i-oneoui'se  *>t  people  had  collected 
thei'e  for  safety,  as  a  spot  \\here  they  iniglit  be  beyond  tin' 
reach  of  falling  ruins;  but  suddenly  tlu><|uay  sunk  down 
with  all  the  people  on  it,  and  not-  one  of  the  dead  bodies 
ever  floated  to  the  surface." 

The  shock  of  the  earthquake  "  was  instantly  followed  by 
the  fall  of  every  elunvh  and  convent,  almost  all  the  large 
and  public  buildings,  and  one-fourth  of  the  houses.  In  about 
INN  o  hours  afterward,  I  ires  broke  out  in  dillerent  quarters,  and 
raged  with  such  violence  for  the  space  of  nearly  three  days 
that,  the  city  was  completely  desolated.  The  earthquake 
happened  on  a.  holy  day,  when  the  churches  and  convents 
were  full  of  people,  very  few  of  whom  escaped."  "The  terror 
of  the  people  was  beyond  description.  Nobody  wept;  it  was 
beyond  tears.  They  ran  hither  and  thither,  delirious  with 
horror  and  astonishment,  healing  their  faces  and  breasts, 
crying,  '  Mi*  r/cordia !  (lie  /n*r/(/'x  at  an  cn<l .''  Mothers  forgot 
their  children,  and  ran  loaded  with  crucilixed  images. 
t'nfortunately,  many  ran  to  the  churches  for  protection;  but 
in  vain  was  the  sacrament  exposed;  in  vain  did  the  poor 
creatures  embrace  the  altars;  images,  priests,  and  people  were 
buried  in  one  common  ruin."  "  Ninety  thousand  persons 
are  supposed  to  have  been  lost  on  that  fatal  day." 
Twenty-five  years  later  appeared  the  next  sign  mentioned 

in    the   prophecy,— the    darkening    of  the    sun    and    moon. 
What  rendered   this  more  striking    was  tbo   fact    that   the 


306  •    THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


time  of  its  fulfillment  had  been  definitely  pointed  out.  In 
the  Saviour's  conversation  with  his  disciples  upon  Olivet, 
after  describing  the  long  period  of  trial  for  the  church — the 
1260  years  of  papal  persecution,  concerning  which  he  had 
promised  that  fhe  tribulation  should  be  shortened — he  thus 
mentioned  certain  events  to  precede  his  coming,  and  fixed 
the  time  when  the  first  of  these  should  be  witnessed:  "In 
those  days,  after  that  tribulation,  the  sun  shall  be  darkened, 
and  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light."1  The  1260  days,  or 
years,  terminated  in  1708.  A  quarter  of  a  century  earlier, 
persecution  had  almost  wholly  ceased.  Between  these  two 
dates,  according  to  the  words  of  Christ,  the  sun  was  to  be  dark- 
ened. On  the  19th  of  May,  1.780,  this  prophecy  was  fulfilled. 

"  Almost  if  not  'altogether  alone  as  the  most  mysterious 
and  as  yet  unexplained  phenomenon  of  its  kind,  .  .  . 
stands  the  dark  day  of  May  19,  1780, — a  most  unaccount- 
able darkening  of  the  whole  visible  heavens  and  atmos- 
phere in  New  England."  That  the  darkness  was  not  due 
to  an  eclipse  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  the  moon  was 
then  nearly  full.  It  was  not  caused  by  clouds,  or  the  thick- 
ness of  the  atmosphere,  for  in  some  localities  where  the  dark- 
ness extended,  the  sky  was  so  clear  that  the  stars  could  be 
seen.  Concerning  the  inability  of  science  to  assign  a  satis- 
factory cause  for  this  manifestation,  Herschel  the  astron- 
omer declares:  "  The  dark  day  in  North  America  was  one  of 
those  wonderful  phenomena  of  nature  which  philosophy  is 
at  a  loss  to  explain." 

"  The  extent  of  the  darkness  was  also  very  remarkable.  It 
was  observed  at  the  most  easterly  regions  of  New  England; 
westward,  to  the  farthest  part  of  Connecticut,  and  at  Albany, 
N.  Y.;  to  the  southward,  it  was  observed  all  along  the  sea 
coast;  and  to  the  north,  as  far  as  the  American  settlements 
extended.  It  probably' far  exceeded  those  boundaries,  but 
the  exact  limits  we're  never  positively  known.  With  regard 
to  its  duration,  it  continued  in  the  neighborhood  of  Boston 
for  at  least  fourteen  or  fifteen  hours." 

'Mark   13:24. 


Engraved  Expressly  for  Great  Controversy* 

SIGNS  OF 


Copyrighted  1890. 


HIS  COMING. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING.  307 


'The  morning  was  clear  and  pleasant,  but  about  eight 
o'clock  there  was  observed  an  uncommon  appearance  in  the 
sun.  There  were,  no  clouds,  but  the  air  was  thick,  having  a 
smoky  appearance,  and  the  sun  shone  with  a  pale,  yellow- 
ish hue,  but  kept  growing  darker  and  darker,  until  it  was 
hid  from  sight."  There  was  "midnight  darkness  at  noon- 
day." 

"The  occurrence  brought  intense  alarm  and  distress  to 
multitudes  of  minds,  as  well  as  dismay  to  the  whole  brute 
creation,  the  fowls  fleeing  bewildered  to  their  roosts,  and  the 
birds  to  their  nests,  and  the  cattle  returning  to  their  stalls." 
Frogs  and  night  hawks  began  their  notes.  The  cocks  crew  as 
at  daybreak.  Farmers  were  forced  to  leave  their  work  in  the 
fields.  Business  was  generally  suspended,  and  candles  were 
lighted  in  the  dwellings.  "  The  Legislature  of  Connecticut 
was  in  session  at  Hartford,  but  being  unable  to  transact 
business  adjourned.  Everything  bore  the  appearance  and 
gloom  of  night." 

The  intense  darkness  of  the  day  was  succeeded,  an  hour 
or  two  before  evening,  by  a  partially  clear  sky,  and  the  sun 
appeared,  though  it  was  still  obscured  by  the  black,  heavy 
mist.  But  "this  interval  was  followed  by  a  return  of  the 
obscuration  with  greater  density,  that  rendered  the  first 
half  of  the  night  hideously  dark  beyond  all  former  experi- 
ence of  the  probable  million  of  people  who  saw  it.  From 
soon  after  sunset  until  midnight,  no  ray  of  light  from  moon 
or  star  penetrated  the  vault  above.  It  was  pronounced  '  the 
blackness  of  darkness!"5  Said  an  eye-witness  of  the  scene: 
"  I  could  not  help  conceiving,  at  the  time,  that  if  every 
luminous  body  in  the  universe  had  been  shrouded  in  impen- 
etrable darkness,  or  struck  out  of  existence,  the  darkness 
could  not  have  been  more  complete."  Though  the  moon 
that  night  rose  to  the  full,  "it  had  not  the  least  effect  to  dis- 
pel the  death-like  shadows."  After  midnight  the  darkness 
disappeared,  and  the  moon,  when  first  visible,  had  the 
appearance  of  blood. 


308  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  poet  Whittier  thus  speaks  of  this  memorable  day:- 

'"Twas  on  a  May-day  of  the  far  old  year 
Seventeen  hundred  eighty,  that  there  fell 
Over  the  bloom  and  sweet  life  of  the  spring, 
Over  the  fresh  earth,  and  the  heaven  of  noon, 
A  horror  of  great  darkness. " 

"  Men  prayed,  and  women  wept;  all  ears  grew  sharp 
To  hear  the  doom-blast  of  the  trumpet  shatter 
The  black  sky." 

May  19,  1780,  stands  in  history  as  "The  Dark  Day." 
Since  the  time  of  Moses,  no  period  of  darkness  of  equal 
density,  extent,  and  duration  has  ever  been  recorded.  The 
description  of  this  event,  as  given  by  the  poet  and  the  histo- 
rian, is  but  an  echo  of  the  words  of  the  Lord,  recorded  by 
the  prophet  Joel,  twenty-five  hundred  years  previous  to  their 
fulfillment :  "  The  sun  shall  be  turned  into  darkness,  and  the 
moon  into  blood,  before  the  great  and  the  terrible  day  of  the 
Lord  come."1 

Christ  had  bidden  his  people  watch  for  the  signs  of  his 
advent,  and  rejoice  as  they  should  behold  the  tokens  of  their 
coming  King.  "  When  these  things  begin  to  come  to  pass," 
he  said,  "then  look  up,  and  lift  up  your  heads;  for  your 
redemption  draweth  nigh."  He  pointed  his  followers  to  the 
budding  trees  of  spring,  and  said:  "When  they  now  shoot 
forth,  ye  see  and  know  of  your  own  selves  that  summer  is 
now  nigh  at  hand.  So  likewise  ye,  when  ye  see  these  things 
come  to  pass,  know  ye  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  nigh  at 
hand."2 

But  as  the  spirit  of  humility  and  devotion  in  the  church 
had  given  place  to  pride  and  formalism,  love  for  Christ  and 
faith  in  his  coming  had  grown  cold.  Absorbed  in  worldliness 
a"nd  pleasure-seeking,  the  professed  people  of  God  were 
blinded  to  the  Saviour's  instructions  concerning  the  signs  of 
his  appearing.  The  doctrine  of  the  second  advent  had  been 
neglected;  the  scriptures  relating  to  it  were  obscured  by  mis- 
interpretation, until  it  was,  to  a  great  extent,  ignored  and 
forgotten.  Especially  was  this  the  case  in  the  churches  of 
America.  The  freedom  and  comfort  enjoyed  by  all  classes 

1  Joel  2  : 31.  a  Luke  21  :  'J8,  30,  31. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING.  309 

of  society,  the  ambitious  desire  for  wealth  and  luxury,  beget- 
ting an  absorbing  devotion  to  money-making,  the  eager 
rush  for  popularity  and  power,  which  seemed  to  be  within 
the  reach  of  all,  led  men  to  center  their  interests  and  hopes 
on  the  things  of  this  life,  and  to  put  far  in  the  future  that 
solemn  day  when  the  present  order  of  things  should  pass 
away. 

When  the  Saviour  pointed  out  to  his  followers  the  signs 
of  his  return,  he  foretold  the  state  of  backsliding  that  would 
exist  just  prior  to  his  second  advent.  There  would  be,  as  in 
the  days  of  Noah,  the  activity  and  stir  of  worldly  business 
and  pleasure-seeking — buying,  selling,  planting,  building, 
marrying,  and  giving  in  marriage — rwith  forgetfulness  of  God 
and  the  future  life.  For  those  living  at  this  time,  Christ's 
admonition  is :  "  Take  heed  to  yourselves,  lest  at  any  time 
your  hearts  be  overcharged  with  surfeiting,  and  drunken- 
ness, and  cares  of  this  life,  and  so  that  day  come  upon  you 
unawares."  "  Watch  ye  therefore,  and  pray  always,  that  ye 
may  be  accounted  worthy  to  escape  all  these  things  that 
shall  come  to  pass,  and  to  stand  before  the  Son  of  man."1 

The  condition  of  the  church  at  this  time  is  pointed  out 
in  the  Saviour's  words  in  the  Revelation:  "Thou  hast  a 
name  that  thou  livest,  and  art  dead."  2  And  to  those  who 
refuse  to  arouse  from  their  careless  security,  the  solemn 
warning  is  addressed :  "  If  therefore  thou  shalt  not  watch,  I 
will  come  on  thee  as  a  thief,  and  thou  shalt  not  know 
what  hour  I  will  corne  upon  thee." 2 

It  was  needful  that  men  should  be  awakened  to  their 
danger ;  that  they  should  be  roused  to  prepare  for  the  solemn 
events  connected  with  the  close  of  probation.  The  prophet 
of  God  declares:  "The  day  of  the  Lord  is  great  and  very 
terrible;  and  who  can  abide  it?"3  Who  shall  stand  when 
He  appeareth  who  is  "of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold  evil, 
and  cannot  look  on  iniquity?"*  To  them  that  cry,  "My 
God,  we  know  thee,"  yet  have  transgressed  his  covenant, 

'Luke  21:34,36  2Rev.  3:1,3. 

3  Joel  2: 11.  *Hab.  1  : 13. 


310  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

and  hastened  after  another  god,1  hiding  iniquity  in  theii 
hearts,  and  loving  the  paths  of  unrighteousness,  to  these, 
the  day  of  the  Lord  is  "  darkness,  and  not  light,  even  very 
dark,  and  no  brightness  in  it." 2  "  It  shall  come  to  pass  at 
that  time,"  saith  the  Lord,  "  that  I  will  search  Jerusalem  with 
candles,  and  punish  the  men  that  are  settled  on  their  lees; 
that  say  in  their  heart,  The  Lord  will  not  do  good,  neither 
will  he  do  evil."3  "I  will  punish  the  world  for  their  evil, 
and  the  wicked  for  their  iniquity;  and  I  will  cause  the 
arrogancy  of  the  proud  to  cease,  and  will  lay  low  the  haugh- 
tiness of  the  terrible." 4  "  Neither  their  silver  nor  their 
gold  shall  be  able  to  deliver  them;"  "their  goods  shall 
become  a  booty,  and  their  houses  a  desolation." 5 

The  prophet  Jeremiah,  looking  forward  to  this  fearful 
time,  exclaimed :  "  I  am  pained  at  my  very  heart."  "  I  can- 
not hold  my  peace,  because  thou  hast  heard,  0  my  soul, 
the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  the  alarm  of  war.  Destruction 
upon  destruction  is  cried." e 

"That  day  is  a  day  of  wrath,  a  day  of  trouble  and  distress 
a  day  of  wasteness  and  desolation,  a  day  of  darkness  and 
gloominess,  a  day  of  clouds  and  thick  darkness,  a  day  of  the 
trumpet  and  alarm." 7  "  Behold,  the  day  of  the  Lord  cometh, 

.  .  .  to  lay  the  land  desolate,  and  he  shall  destroy  the 
sinners  thereof  out  of  it."f 

In  view  of  that  great  day  the  Word  of  God,  in  the  most 
solemn  and  impressive  language,  calls  upon  his  people  to 
arouse  from  their  spiritual  lethargy,  and  to  seek  his  face 
with  repentance  and  humiliation:  "Blow  ye  the  trumpet  in 
Zion,  and  sound  an  alarm  in  my  holy  mountain.  Let  all 
the  inhabitants  of  the  land  tremble;  for  the  day  of  the  Lord 
cometh,  for  it  is  nigh  at  hand."  "Sanctify  a  fast,  call  a 
solemn  assembly.  Gather  the  people,  sanctify  the  congrega- 
tion, assemble  the  elders,  gather  the  children.  .  .  .  Let 
the  bridegroom  go  forth  of  his  chamber,  and  the  bride  out 

'Hos.  8:2,  1;  Pa.  16:4.  2  Amos  5: 20.  3Zeph.l:12. 

«Isa.  13:11.  *Zeph.  1  :18,  13.      6 Jer.  4: 10,  20. 

'Zeph.  1:15,  16.  8  Isa.  13:9. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNTNG.  311 

of  her  closet.  Let  the  priests,  the  ministers  of  the  Lord, 
weep  between  the  porch  and  the  altar."  "  Turn  ye  even  to 
me  with  all  your  heart,  and  with  fasting,  and  with  weeping, 
and  with  mourning.  And  rend  your  heart,  and  not  your 
garments,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord  your  God;  for  he  is  gra- 
cious and  merciful,  slow  to  anger,  and  of  great  kindness." l 

To  prepare  a  people  to  stand  in  the  day  of  God,  a  great 
work  of  reform  was  to  be  accomplished.  God  saw  that  many 
of  his  professed  people  were  not  building  for  eternity,  and  in 
his  mercy  he  was  about  to  send  a  message  of  warning  to 
arouse  them  from  their  stupor,  and  lead  them  to  make  ready 
for  the  coming  of  their  Lord. 

This  warning  is  brought  to  view  in  Revelation  14.  Here 
is  a  threefold  message  represented  as  proclaimed  by  heav- 
enly beings,  and  immediately  followed  by  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  man  "to  reap  the  harvest  of  the  earth."  The 
first  of  these  warnings  announces  the  approaching  Judg- 
ment. The  prophet  beheld  an  angel  flying  "in  the  midst  of 
heaven,  having  the  everlasting  gospel  to  preach  unto  them 
that  dwell  on  the  earth,  and  to  every  nation,  and  kindred, 
and  tongue,  and  people,  saying  with  a  loud  voice,  Fear  God, 
and  give  glory  to  him ;  for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment  is 
come;  and  worship  him  that  made  heaven,  and  earth,  and 
the  sea,  and  the  fountains  of  waters." a 

This  message  is  declared  to  be  a  part  of  the  "  everlasting 
gospel."  The  work  of  preaching  the  gospel  has  not  been 
committed  to  angels,  but  has  been  intrusted  to  men.  Holy 
angels  have  been  employed  in  directing  this  work,  they 
have  in  charge  the  great  movements  for  the  salvation  of 
men ;  but  the  actual  proclamation  of  the  gospel  is  performed 
by  the  servants  of  Christ  upon  the  earth. 

Faithful  men,  who  were  obedient  to  the  promptings  of 
God's  Spirit  and  the  teachings  of  his  Word,  were  to  pro- 
claim this  warning  to  the  world.  They  were  those  who 
had  taken  heed  to  the  "sure  word  of  prophecy,"  the  "light 

1  Joel  2  : 1,  15-18,  12,  13.  2Eev.  14  : 6,  7. 


312  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

that  shineth  in  a  dark  place,  until  the  day  dawn,  and  the 
day-star  arise."1  They  had  been  seeking  the  knowledge  of 
God  more  than  all  hid  treasures,  counting  it  "better  than 
the  merchandise  of  silver,  and  the  gain  thereof  than  fine 
gold."2  And  the  Lord  revealed  to  them  the  great  things  of 
the  kingdom.  "The  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them  that 
fear  him;  and  he  will  show  them  his  covenant."3 

It  was  not  the  leaders  in  the  church  who  had  an  under- 
standing of  this  truth,  and  engaged  in  its  proclamation. 
Had  these  been  faithful  watchmen,  diligently  and  prayerfully 
searching  the  Scriptures,  they  would  have  known  the  time  of 
night;  the  prophecies  would  have  opened  to  them  the  events 
about  to  take  place.  But  they  did  not  occupy  this  position, 
and  the  message  was  given  by  another  class.  Said  Jesus, 
"Walk  while  ye  have  the  light,  lest  darkness  come  upon 
you."*  Those  who  turn  away  from  the  light  which  God  has 
given,  or  who  neglect  to  seek  it  when  it  is  within  their  read  i. 
are  left  in  darkness.  But  the  Saviour  declares,  "  He  that  fol- 
loweth  me  shall  not  walk  in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the 
light  of  life."5  Whoever  is  with  singleness  of  purpose  seek- 
ing to  do  God's  will,  earnestly  heeding  the  light  already 
given,  will  receive  greater  light;  to  that  soul  some  star  of 
heavenly  radiance  will  be  sent,  to  guide  him  into  all  truth. 

At  the  time  of  Christ's  first  advent,  the  priests  and  scribes 
of  the  holy  city,  to  whom  were  intrusted  the  oracles  of  God, 
might  have  discerned  the  signs  of  the  times,  and  proclaimed 
the  coming  of  the  Promised  One.  The  prophecy  of  Micah 
designated  his  birthplace;6  Daniel  specified  the  time  of  his 
advent.7  God  had  committed  these  prophecies  to  the  Jew- 
ish leaders;  they  were  without  excuse  if  th.-y  did  not  know 
and  declare  to  the  people  that  the  Messiah's  coming  was  at 
hand.  Their  ignorance  was  the  result  of  sinful  neglect. 
The  .h-ws  were  building  monuments  for  the  slain  prophets 
of  God,  while  by  their  deference  to  the  great  men  of  earth 
they  were  paying  homage  to  the  servants  of  Satan.  Ab- 


.  1:19.         'Prov.  3:14.         3Ps.  25:14.         «Johnl2:35, 
6  John  8:12.        «  Micah.  5:2.        7  Dan.  9:25. 


///:/;, i/, MS:  OF  TIIK  MORNING.  313 


sorbed  in  their  ambitious  strife  for  place  and  power  among 
men,  they  lost  sight  of  Ge  divine  honors  proffered  them  by 
the  King  of  Heaven. 

With  profound  and  reverent  interest  the  elders  of  Israel 
should  have  been  studying  the  place,  the  time,  the  circum- 
stances, of  the  greatest  event  in  the  world's  history, — the 
coming  of  the  Son  of  God  to  accomplish  the  redemption  of 
man.  All  the  people  should  have  been  watching  and  wait- 
ing that  they  might  be  among  the  first  to  welcome  the 
world's  Redeemer.  But  lo,  at  Bethlehem  two  weary  trav- 
elers from  the  hills  of  Nazareth  traverse  the  whole  length 
of  the  narrow  street  to  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  town, 
vainly  seeking  a  place  of  rest  and  shelter  for  the  night.  No 
doors  are  open  to  receive  them.  In  a  wretched  hovel  pre- 
pared for  cattle,  they  at  last  find  refuge,  and  there  the  Sav- 
iour of  the  world  is  born. 

Heavenly  angels  had  seen  the  glory  which  the  Son  of  God 
shared  with  the  Father  before  the  world  was,  and  they  had 
looked  forward  with  intense  interest  to  his  appearing  on 
earth  as  an  event  fraught  with  the  greatest  joy  to  all  peo- 
ple. Angels  were  appointed  to  carry  the  glad  tidings  to 
those  who  were  prepared  to  receive  it,  and  who  would  joy- 
fully make  it  known  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth.  Christ 
had  stooped  to  take  upon  himself  man's  nature ;  he  was  to 
bear  an  infinite  weight  of  woe  as  he  should  make  his  soul 
an  offering  for  sin;  yet  angels  desired  that  even  in  his 
humiliation,  the  Son  of  the  Highest  might  appear  before  men 
with  a  dignity  and  glory  befitting  his  character.  Would 
the  great  men  of  earth  assemble  at  Israel's  capital  to  greet 
his  coming?  Would  legions  of  angels  present  him  to  the 
expectant  company? 

An  angel  visits  the  earth  to  see  who  are  prepared  to  wel- 
come Jesus.  But  he  can  discern  no  tokens  of  expectancy. 
He  hears  no  voice  of  praise  and  triumph  that  the  period 
of  Messiah's  coming  is  at  hand.  The  angel  hovers  for  a 
time  over  the  chosen  city  and  the  temple  where  the  divine 

24 


314  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

presence  was  manifested  for  ages ;  but  even  here  is  the  same 
indifference.  The  priests,  in  their  pomp  and  pride,  are  offer- 
ing polluted  sacrifices  in  the  temple.  The  Pharisees  are 
with  loud  voices  addressing  the  people,  or  making  boastful 
prayers  at  the  corners  of  the  streets.  In  the  palaces  of  kings, 
in  the  assemblies  of  philosophers,  in  the  schools  of  the 
rabbis,  all  are  alike  unmindful  of  the  wondrous  factr  which 
has  filled  all  Heaven  with  joy  and  praise,  that  the  Redeemer 
of  men  is  about  to  appear  upon  the  earth. 

There  is  no  evidence  that  Christ  is  expected,  and  no  prepa- 
ration for  the  Prince  of  life.  In  amazement  the  celestial  mes- 
senger is  about  to  return  to  Heaven  with  the  shameful  tid- 
ings, when  he  discovers  a  group  of  shepherds  who  are  watch- 
ing their  flocks  by  night,  and,  as  they  gaze  into  the  starry 
heavens,  are  contemplating  the  prophecy  of  a  Messiah  to 
come  to  earth,  and  longing  for  the  advent  of  the  world's 
Redeemer.  Here  is  a  company  that  are  prepared  to  receive 
the  heavenly  message.  And  suddenly  the  angel  of  the  Lord 
appeared,  declaring  the  good  tidings  of  great  joy.  Celestial 
glory  flooded  all  the  plain,  an  innumerable  company  of 
angels  was  revealed,  and  as  if  the.  joy  were  too  great  for  one 
messenger  to  bring  from  Heaven,  a  multitude  of  voices 
broke  forth  in  the  anthem  which  all  the  nations  of  the  saved 
shall  one  day  sing,  "Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on 
earth  peace,  good- will  toward  men."1 

Oh,  what  a  lessson  is  this  wonderful  story  of  Bethlehem! 
How  it  rebukes  our  unbelief,  our  pride,  and  self-sufficiency. 
How  it  warns  us  to  beware,  Jest  by  our  criminal  indiffer- 
ence we  also  fail  to  discern  the  signs  of  the  times,  and  there- 
fore know  not  the  day  of  our  visitation. 

It  was  not  alone  upon  the  hills  of  Judea,  not  among  the 
lowly  shepherds  only,  that  angels  found  the  watchers  for 
Messiah's  coming.  In  the  land  of  the  heathen  also  were 
those  that  looked  for  him ;  they  were  wise  men,  rich  and 
noble,  the  philosophers  <>f  th<>  Kasf.  Students  of  nature,  the 
magi  had  seen  God  in  his  handiwork.  From  the  Hebrew 

1  Luke  2:  14. 


HERALDS  OF  THE  MORNING.  315 


Scriptures  they  had  learned  of  the  Star  to  arise  out  of  Jacob, 
and  with  eager  desire  they'  waited  His  coming,  who  should 
be  not  only  the  "Consolation  of  Israel,"  but  a  "Light  to 
lighten  the  Gentiles/'  and  "  for  salvation  unto  the  ends  of 
the'earth."'1  They  were  seekers  for  light,  and  light  from  the 
throne  of  God  illumined  the  path  for  their  feet.  While  the 
priests  and  rabbis  of  Jerusalem,  the  appointed  guardians 
and  expounders  of  the  truth,  were  shrouded  in  darkness, 
the  Heaven-sent  star  guided  these  Gentile  strangers  to  the 
birthplace  of  the  new-born  King. 

It  is  "unto  them  that  look  for  him"  that  Christ  is  to 
"appear  the  socond  time,  without  sin  unto  salvation."  '  Like 
"the  tidings  of  the  Saviour's  birth,  the  message  of  the  second 
advent  was  not  committed  to  the  religious  leaders  of  the  peo- 
ple. They  had  failed  to  preserve  their  connection  with  God, 
and  had  refused  light  from  Heaven;  therefore  they  were 
not  of  the  number  described  by  the  apostle  Paul :  "  But  ye, 
brethren,  are  not  in  darkness,  that  that  day  should  overtake 
you  as  a  thief.  Ye  are  all  the  children  of  light,  and  the 
children  of  the  day;  we  are  not  of  the  night,  nor  of  dark- 


ness."3 


The  watchmen  upon  the  walls  of  Zion  should  have  been 
the  first  to  catch  the  tidings  of  the  Saviour's  advent,  the 
first  to  lift  their  voices  to  proclaim  him  near,  the  first 
to  warn  the  people  to  prepare  for  his  coming.  But  they 
were  at  ease,  dreaming  of  peace  and  safety,  while  the  peo- 
ple were  asleep  in  their  sins.  Jesus  saw  his  church,  like 
the  barren  fig-tree,  covered  with  pretentious  leaves,  yet  des- 
titute of  precious  fruit.  There  was  a  boastful  observance  of 
the  forms  of  religion,  while  the  spirit  of  true  humility,  pen- 
itence, and  faith — which  alone  could  render  the  service 
acceptable  to  God — was  lacking.  Instead  of  the  graces  of 
the  Spirit,  there  were  manifested  pride,  formalism,  vainglory, 
selfishness,  oppression.  A  backsliding  church  closed  their 
eves  to  the  signs  of  the  times,  (rod  did  not  forsake  them,  or 

lLuke  2:25,  32;  Acts  13:47.         'Heb.  9:28.         3  1  Thess.  5:4,  5. 


316  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


suffer  his  faithfulness  to  fail;  but  they  departed  from  him, 
and  separated  themselves  from  his  love.  As  they  refused  to 
comply  with  the  conditions,  his  promises  were  not  fulfilled 
to  them. 

Such  is  the  sure  result  of  neglect  to  appreciate  and 
improve  the  light  and  privileges  which  God  bestows.  Unless 
the  church  will  follow  on  in  his  opening  providence,  accept- 
ing every  ray  of  light,  performing  every  duty  which  may  be 
revealed,  religion  will  inevitably  degenerate  into  the  observ- 
ance of  forms,  and  the  spirit  of  vital  godliness  will  disappear. 
This  truth  has  been  repeatedly  illustrated  in  the  history  of 
the  church.  God  requires  of  his  people  works  of  .faith  and 
obedience  corresponding  to  the  blessings  and  privileges 
bestowed.  Obedience  requires  a  sacrifice  and  involves  a 
cross;  and  this  is  why  so  many  of  the  professed  followers  of 
Christ  refused  to  receive  the  light  from  Heaven,  and,  like  tin; 
Jews  of  old,  knew  not  the  time  of  their  visitation.1  lie- 
cause  of  their  pride  and  unbelief,  the  Lord  passed  them  by 
and  revealed  his  truth  to  those  who,  like  the  shepherds  of 
Bethlehem  and  the  Eastern  magi,  had  given  heed  to  all  the 
light  they  had  received. 

JLuke  19:44. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 


AN    AMERICAN    REFORMER. 

AN  upright,  honest-hearted  farmer,  who  had  been  led  to 
doubt  the  divine  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  yet  who  sin- 
cerely desired  to  know  the  truth,  was  the  man  specially 
chosen  of  God  to  lead  out  in  the  proclamation  of  Christ's 
second  coming.  Like  many  other  reformers,  William  Miller 
had  in  early  life  battled  with  poverty,  and  had  thus  learned 
the  great  lessons  of  energy  and  self-denial.  The  members 
of  the  family  from  which  he  sprung  were  characterized  by 
an  independent,  liberty-loving  spirit,  by  capability  of  endur- 
ance, and  ardent  patriotism;  traits  which  were  also  promi- 
nent in  his  character.  His  father  was  a  captain  in  the  army 
of  the  Revolution,  and  to  the  sacrifices  which  he  made  in 
the  struggles  and  sufferings  of  that  stormy  period,  may  be 
traced  the  straitened  circumstances  of  Miller's  early  life. 

He  had  a  sound  physical  constitution,  and  even  in  child- 
hood gave  evidence  of  more  than  ordinary  intellectual 
strength.  As  he  grew  older,  this  became  more  marked.  His 
mind  was  active  and  well-developed,  and  he  had  a  keen 
thirst  for  knowledge.  Though  he  did  not  enjoy  the  advan- 
tages of  a  collegiate  education,  his  love  of  study  and  a  habit 
of  careful  thought  and  close  criticism  rendered  him  a  man 
of  sound  judgment  and  comprehensive  views.  He  possessed 
an  irreproachable  moral  character  and  an  enviable  repu- 
tation, being  generally  esteemed  for  integrity,  thrift,  and 
benevolence.  By  dint  of  energy  and  application  he  early 
acquired  a  competence,  though  his  habits  of  study  were  still 
maintained.  He  filled  various  civil  and  military  offices 
with  credit,  and  the  avenues  to  wealth  and  honor  seemed 
wide  open  to  him. 

(317) 


318  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


His  mother  was  a  woman  of  sterling  piety,  and  in  child- 
hood he  had  been  subject  to  religious  impressions.  In  early 
manhood,  however,  he  was  thrown  into  the  society  of  deists, 
whose  influence  was  the  stronger  from  the  fact  that  they 
were  mostly  good  citizens,  and  men  of  humane  and  benev- 
olent disposition.  Living,  as  they  did,  in  the  midst  of  Chris- 
tian institutions,  their  characters  had  been  to  some  extent 
moulded  by  their  surroundings.  For  the  excellencies  which 
won  them  respect  and  confidence  they  were  indebted  to  the 
Bible;  and  yet  these  good  gifts  were  so  perverted  as  to  exert 
an  influence  against  the  Word  of  God.  By  association  with 
these  men,  Miller  was  led  to  adopt  their  sentiments.  The 
current  interpretations  of  Scripture  presented  difficulties 
which  seemed  to  him  insurmountable;  yet  his  new  belief, 
while  setting  aside  the  Bible,  offered  nothing  better  to  take 
its  place,  and  he  remained  far  from  satisfied.  He  continued 
to  hold  these  views,  however,  for  about  twelve  years.  But  at 
the  age  of  thirty-four,  the  Holy  Spirit  impressed  his  heart 
with  a  sense  of  his  condition  as  a  sinner.  He  found  in  his 
former  belief  no  assurance  of  happiness  beyond  the  grave. 
The  future  was  dark  and  gloomy.  Referring  afterward  to 
his  feelings  at  this  time,  he  said  : — 

"Annihilation  was  a  cold  and  chilling  thought,  and 
accountability  was  sure  destruction  to  all.  The  heavens 
were  as  brass  over  my  head,  and  the  earth  as  iron  under  my 
feet.  Eternity — wrhatwasit?  And  death — why  was  it?  The 
more  I  reasoned,  the  further  I  was  from  demonstration. 
The  more  I  thought,  the  more  scattered  were  my  conclu- 
sions. I  tried  to  stop  thinking;  but  my  thoughts  would  not 
be  controlled.  I  was  truly  wretched,  but  did  not  under- 
stand the  cause.  I  murmured  and  complained,  but  knew 
not  of  whom.  I  knew  that  there  was  a  wrong,  but  knew 
not  where  or  how  to  find  the  right,  I  mourned,  but  without 
hope." 

In  this  state  he  continued  for  some  months.  "Suddenly," 
he  says,  "  the  character  of  a  Saviour  was  vividly  impressed 


Aft  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  Bl  9 

upon  my  mind.  It  seemed  that  there  might  be  a  being  so 
good  and  compassionate  as  to  himself  atone  for  our  trans- 
gressions, and  thereby  save  us  from  suffering  the  penalty  of 
sin.  I  immediately  felt  how  lovely  such  a  being  must  be, 
and  imagined  that  I  could  cast  myself  into  the  arms,  and 
trust  in  the  mercy,  of  such  a  One.  But  the  question  arose, 
How  can  it  be  proved  that  such  a  being  does  exist?  Aside 
from  the  Bible,  I  found  that  I  could  get  no  evidence  of  the 
existence  of  such  a  Saviour,  or  even  of  a  future  state." 

"I  saw  that  the  Bible  did  bring  to  view  just  such  a  Saviour 
as  I  needed;  and  I  was  perplexed  to  find  how  an  uninspired 
book  should  develop  principles  so  perfectly  adapted  to  the 
wants  of  a  fallen  world.  I  was  constrained  -  to  admit  that 
the  Scriptures  must  be  a  revelation  from  God.  They  became 
my  delight;  and  in  Jesus  I  found  a  friend.  The  Saviour 
became  to  me  the  chiefest  among* ten  thousand;  and  the 
Scriptures,  which  before  were  dark  and  contradictory,  now 
became  a  lamp  to  my  feet  and  a  light  to  my  path.  My 
mind  became  settled  and  satisfied.  I  found  the  Lord  God  to 
be  a  Rock  in  the  midst  of  the  ocean  of  life.  The  Bible  now 
became  my  chief  study,  and  I  can  truly  say,  I  searched  it 
with  great  delight.  I  found  the  half  was  never  told  me. 
I  wondered  why  I  had  not  seen  its  beauty  and  glory  before, 
and  marveled  that  I  could  ever  have  rejected  it.  I  found 
everything  revealed  that  my  heart  could  desire,  and  a  rem- 
edy for  every  disease  of  the  soul.  I  lost  all  taste  for  other 
reading,  and  applied  my  heart  to  get  wisdom  from  God." 

He  now  publicly  professed  his  faith  in  the  religio"n  whicn 
he  had  despised.  But  his  infidel  associates  were  not  slow  to 
bring  forward  all  those  arguments  which  he  himself  had 
often  urged  against  the  divine  authority  of  the  Scriptures. 
He  was  not  then  prepared  to  answer  them;  but  he  reasoned, 
that  if  the  Bible  is  a  revelation  from  God,  it  must  be  con- 
sistent with  itself;  and  that  as  it  was  given  for  man's  instruc- 
tion, it  must  be  adapted  to  his  understanding.  He  deter- 
mined to  study  the  Scriptures  for-  himself,  and  ascertain  if 
every  apparent  contradiction  could  not  be  harmonized. 


320  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Endeavoring  to  lay  aside  all  preconceived  opinions,  and 
dispensing  with  commentaries,  he  compared  scripture  with 
scripture  by  the  aid  of  the  marginal  references  and  the  con- 
cordance. He  pursued  his  study  in  a  regular  and  method- 
ical manner;  beginning  with  Genesis,  arid  reading  verse  by 
verse,  he  proceeded  no  faster  than  the  meaning  of  the  sev- 
eral passages  so  unfolded  as  to  leave  him  free  from  all 
embarrassment.  When  he  found  anything  obscure,  it  was 
his  custom  to  compare  it  with  every  other  text  which  seemed 
to  have  any  reference  to  the  matter  under  consideration. 
Every  word  was  permitted  to  have  its  proper  bearing  upon 
the  subject  of  the  text,  and  if  his  view  of  it  harmonized 
with  every  collateral  passage,  it  ceased  to  be  a  difficulty. 
Thus  whenever  he  met  with  a  passage  hard  to  be  under- 
stood, he  found  an  explanation  in  some  other  portion  of  the 
Scriptures.  As  he  studied  with  earnest  prayer  for  divine 
enlightenment,  that  which  had  before  appeared  dark  to  his 
understanding  was  made  clear.  He  experienced  the  truth 
of  the  psalmist's  words,  "The  entrance  of  Thy  words  giveth- 
light;  it  giveth  understanding  unto  the  simple."1 

With  intense  interest  he  studied  the  book  of  Daniel  and 
the  Revelation,  employing  the  same  principles  of  interpreta- 
tion as  in  the  other  scriptures,  and  found,  to  his  great  joy, 
that  the  prophetic  symbols  could  be  understood.  He  saw 
that  the  prophecies,  so  far  as  they  had  been  fulfilled,  had 
been  fulfilled  literally;  that  all  the  various  figures,  meta- 
phors, parables,  similitudes,  etc.,  were  either  explained  in 
their  immediate  connection,  or  the  terms  in  which  they 
were  expressed  were  defined  in  other  scriptures;  and  when 
thus  explained  were  to  be  literally  understood.  "  Thus  I  was 
satisfied,"  he  says,  "that  the  Bible  was  a  system  of  revealed 
truth  so  clearly  and  simply  given  that  the  wayfaring  man, 
though  a  fool,  need  not  err  therein."  Link  after  link  of  the 
chain  of  truth  rewarded  his  efforts,  as  step  by  step  he  traced 
•  lown  the  great  lines  of  prophecy.  Angels  of  Heaven  were 
guiding  his  mind  and  opening  the  Scriptures  to  his  under- 
standing. 

'Ps.  110:130. 


AN  JJ/A'A'/rVLV  REFORMER.  321 

Taking  the  manner  in.  which  the  prophecies  had  been 
fulfilled  in  the  past,  as  a  criterion  by  which  to  judge 
of  the  fulfillment  of  those  which  were  still  future,  he  be- 
came satisfied  that  the  popular  view  of  the  spiritual  reign 
of  Christ — a  temporal  millennium  before  the  end  of  the 
world — was  not  sustained  by  the  Word  of  God.  This 
doctrine,  pointing  to  a  thousand  years  of  righteousness 
and  peace  before  the  personal  coming  of  the  Lord,  put 
far  off  the  terrors  of  the-  day  of  God.  But,  pleasing 
though  it  may  be,  it  is  contrary  to  the  teachings  of  Christ 
and  his  apostles,  who  declared  that  the  wheat  and  the 
tares  are  to  grow  together  until  the  harvest,  the  end  of 
the  world;1  that  "evil  men  and  seducers  shall  wax  worse 
and  worse;"2  that  "in  the  last  days  perilous  times  shall 
come;"2  and  that  the  kingdom  of  darkness  'shall  con- 
tinue until  the  advent  of  the  Lord,  and  shall  be  con- 
sumed with  the  spirit  of  his  mouth,  and  be  destroyed  with 
the  brightness  of  his  coming.3  The  doctrine  of  the  world's 
conversion  and  the  spiritual  reign  of  Christ  was  not  held 
by  the  apostolic  church.  It  was  not  generally  accepted 
by  Christians  until  about  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  Like  every  other  error,  its  results  were  evil.  It 
taught  men  to  look  far  in  the  future  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord,  and  prevented  them  from  giving  heed  to  the  signs 
heralding  his  approach.  It  induced  a  feeling  of  confidence 
and  security  that  was  not  well  founded,  and  led  many  to 
neglect  the  preparation  necessary  in  order  to  meet  their  Lord. 

Miller  found  the  literal,  personal  coming  of  Christ  to  be 

plainly  taught  in  the  Scriptures.      Says  Paul,  "  The  Lord 

himself  shall  descend  from  heaven  with  a  shout,  with  the 

voice  of  the  archangel,  and  with  the  trump  of  God."4     And 

the  Saviour  declares:  "They  shall  seethe  Son  of  man  coming 

in  the  clouds  of  heaven  with  power  and  great  glory."    "For 

as  the  lightning  cometh  out  of  the  east,  and  shineth  even 

unto  the  west;  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man  be."' 

1  Matt.  13  : 30,  38-41.          *2  Tim.  C  :  13,  1.          *  2  These.  2  : 8. 

4 1  Thess.  4  : 16.  6  Matt.  24  : 30.  27. 


322  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


He  is  to  be  accompanied  by  all  the  hosts  of  Heaven.  "The 
Son  of  man  shall  come  in  his  glory,  and  all  the  holy  angels 
with  him."  "And  he  shall  send  his  angels  with  a  great 
sound  of  a  trumpet,  and  they  shall  gather  together  his  elect."1 
At  his  coming  the  righteous  dead  will  be  raised,  and  the 
righteous  living  will  be  changed.  "We  shall  not  all  sleep," 
says  Paul,  "but  we  shall  all  be  changed,  in  a  moment,  in 
the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  at  the  last  trump;  for  the  trumpet 
shall  sound,  and  the  dead  shall  be  raised  incorruptible,  and 
we  shall  be  changed.  For  this  corruptible  must  put  on 
incorruption,  and  this  mortal  must  put  on  immortality.'"2 
And  in  his  letter  to  the  Thessalonians,  after  describing  the 
coming  of  the  Lord,  he  says:  "The  dead  in  Christ  shall  rise 
first;  then  Ave  which  are  alive  and  remain  shall  be  caught 
up  together  with  them  in  the  clouds,  to  meet  the  Lord  in 
the  air;  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord."3 

.Not  until  the  personal  advent  of  Christ  can  his  people 
receive  tli e  kingdom.  The  Saviour  said:  "When  the  Son 
of  man  shall  come  in  his  glory,  and  all  the  holy  angels  with 
him,  then  shall  he  sit  upon  the  throne  of  his  glory ;  and 
before  him  shall  be  gathered  all  nations;  and  he  shall  sepa- 
rate them  one  from  another,  as  a  shepherd  divideth  his 
sheep  from  the  goats;  and  he  shall  set  the  sheep  on  his  right 
hand,  but  the  goats  on  the  left.  Then  shall  the  King  say 
unto  them  on  his  right  hand,  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father, 
inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation 
of  the  world."4  We  have  seen  by  the  scriptures  just  given 
that  when  the  Son  of  man  comes,  the  dead  arc  raised  incor- 
ruptible, and  the  living  are  changed.  By  this  great  change 
they  are  prepared  to  receive  the  kingdom;  for  Paul  says, 
"Flesh  and  blood  cannot  inherit  tlie  kingdom  of  God;  nei- 
ther doth  corruption  inherit  incorruption."1  Man  in  his 
present  state  is  mortal,  corruptible;  but  the  kingdom  of  God 
will  be  incorruptible,  enduring  forever.  Therefore  man  in 
his  present  stdte  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  But 

1Matt.  25  :31;  24  :31.         a  1  Cor.  15  :51  53.         3  1  Thess.  4  : 16,  17. 
*  M  att.  25  : 31-34.  6  1  Cor.  15  :  50 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  323 


when  Jesus  comes,  he' confers  immortality  upon  his  people; 
and  then  he  calls  them  to  inherit  the  kingdom,  of  which 
they  have  hitherto  been  only  heirs. 

These  and  other  scriptures  clearly  proved  to  Miller's  mind, 
that  the  events  which  were  generally  expected  to  take  place 
before  the  coming  of  Christ,  such  as  the  universal  reign  of 
peace,  and  the  setting  up  of  the  kingdom  of  God  upon  the 
earth,  were  to  be  subsequent  to  the  second  advent.  Further- 
more, all  the  sigris  of  the  times  and  the  condition  of  the 
world  corresponded  to  the  prophetic  description  of  the  last 
days.  He  was  forced  to  the  conclusion,  from  the  study  of 
Scripture  alone,  that  the  period  allotted  for  the  continu- 
ance of  the  earth  in  its  present  state  was  about  to  close. 

"Another  evidence  that  vitally  affected  my  mind,"  he 
says,  "  was  the  chronology  of  the  Scriptures.  I  found  that 
predicted  events,  which  had  been  fulfilled  in  the  past,  often 
occurred  within  a  given  time.  The  one  hundred  and  twenty 
years  to  the  flood,  Gen.  6:3;  the  seven  days  that  were  to  pre- 
cede it,  with  forty  days  of  predicted  rain,  Gen.  7:4;  the  four 
hundred  years  of  the  sojourn  of  Abraham's  seed,  Gen.  15: 13; 
the  three  days  of  the  butler's  and  baker's  dreams,  Gen. 
40:12-20;  the  seven  years  of  Pharaoh's,  Gen.  41:28-54;  the 
forty  years  in  the  wilderness,  Num.  14:34;  the  three  and  a 
half  years  of  famine,  1  Kings  17: 1;1  the  seventy  years'  cap- 
tivity, Jer.  25:11;  Nebuchadnezzar's  seven  times,  Dan.  4:13- 
16;  and  the  seven  weeks,  threescore  and  two  weeks,  and  the 
one  week,  making  seventy  weeks,  determined  upon  the  Jews, 
Dan.  9:24-27;  the  events  limited  by  these  times  were  all 
once  only  a  matter  of  prophecy,  and  were  fulfilled  in  accord- 
ance with  the  predictions." 

When,  therefore,  he  found  in  his  study  of  the  Bible,  vari- 
ous chronological  periods  that,  according  to  his  understand- 
ing of  them,  extended  to  the  second  coming  of  Christ,  he 
could  not  but  regard  them  as  the  "  times  before  appointed," 
which  God  had  revealed  unto  his  servants.  "The  secret 
things,"  says  Moses,  "belong  unto  the  Lord  our  God;  but 

Luke  4: 25. 


324  TllK  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

those  things  which  arc  revealed  belong  unto  us  and  to  our 
children  forever/'1  and  the  Lord  declares  by  the  prophet 
Amos,  that  he  "will  do  nothing,  but  he  revealeth  his  secret 
unto  his  servants  the  prophets."2  The  students  of  God's 
Word  may  then  confidently  expect  to  find  the  most  stupen- 
dous event  to  take  place  in  human  history  clearly  pointed  out 
in  the  Scriptures  of  truth. 

"  As  I  was  fully  convinced,"  says  Miller, "  that  all  Scripture 
given  by  inspiration  of  God  is  profitable;3  that  it  came  not 
at  any  time  by  the  will  of  man,  but  was  written  as  holy  men 
were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost,4  and  was  written  '  for  our 
learning,  that  we  through  patience  and  comfort  of  the  Script- 
ures might  have  hope/5  I  could  not  but  regard  the  chrono- 
logical portions  of  the  Bible  as  being  as  much  entitled  to  our 
serious  consideration  as  any  other  portion  of  the  Scriptures. 
I  felt  therefore  that  in  endeavoring  to  comprehend  what  God 
in  his  mercy  had  seen  fit  to  reveal  to  us,  I  had  no  right  to 
pass  over  the  prophetic  periods." 

The  prophecy  which  seemed  most  clearly  to  reveal  the 
time  of  the  second  advent  was  that  of  Dan.  8:14:  "Unto  t\v<> 
thousand  and  three  hundred  days;  then  shall  the  sanct- 
uary be  cleansed."  Following  his  rule  of  making  Scripture 
its  own  interpreter,  Miller  learned  that  a  day  in  symbolic 
prophecy  represents  a  year;6  he  saw  that  the  period  of  2300 
prophetic  days,  or  literal  years,  would  extend  far  beyond  the 
close  of  the  Jewish  dispensation,  hence  it  could  not  refer  to 
the  sanctuary  of  that  dispensation.  Miller  accepted  the 
generally  received  viewr,  that  in  the  Christian  age  the  earth 
is  the  sanctuary,  and  he  therefore  understood  that  the  cleans- 
ing of  the  sanctuary  foretold  in  Dan.  8":  14,  represented  the 
purification  of  the  earth  by  fire  at  the  second  coming  of 
Christ.  If,  then,  the  correct  starting-point  could  be  found 
for  the  2300  days,  he  concluded  that  the  time  of  the  second 
advent  could  be  readily  ascertained.  Thus  would  be  revealed 

1  Deut.  29  :  29.  » Amos  3:7.  8  2  Tim.  3  : 1 6. 

4  2  Pet.  1:21.  •Rom.   15:4.  6Num.  14  :  :U  ;  Exe.  4:6. 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  325 


the  time  of  that  great  consummation,  "the  time  when  the 
present  state,  with  all  its  pride  and  power,  its  pomp  and 
vanity,  wickedness  and  oppression,  would  come  to  an  end; 
.  .  .  when  the  curse  would  be  removed  from  off  the  earth, 
when  death  would  be  destroyed,  reward  be  given  to  the 
servants  of  God,  to  the  prophets  and  saints,  and  all  them 
that  fear  his  name,  and  those  be  destroyed  who  destroy  the 
earth." 

With  a  new  and  deeper  earnestness,  Miller  continued  the 
examination  of  the  prophecies,  whole  nights  as  well  as  days 
being  devoted  to  the  study  of  what  now  appeared  of  such 
stupendous  importance  and  all-absorbing  interest.  In  the 
eighth  chapter  of  Daniel  he  could  find  no  clue  to  the  start- 
ing-point of  the  2300  days;  the  angel  Gabriel,  though  com- 
manded to  make  Daniel  understand  the  vision,  gave  him 
only  a  partial  explanation.  As  the  terrible  persecution  to 
befall  the  church  was  unfolded  to  the  prophet's  vision, 
physical  strength  gave  way.  He  could  endure  no  more, 
and  the  angel  left  him  for  the  time.  Daniel  "fainted,  and 
was  sick  certain  days."  "  And  I  was  astonished  at  the  vis- 
ion," he  says,  "but  none  understood  it." 

Yet  God  had  bidden  his  messenger,  "Make  this  man 
to  understand  the  vision."  That  commission  must  be  ful- 
filled. In  obedience  to  it,  the  angel,  some  time  afterward, 
returned  to  Daniel,  saying,  "  I  am  now  come  forth  to  give 
thee  skill  and  understanding;"  "therefore  understand  the 
matter,  and  consider  the  vision." l  There  was  only  one  point 
in  the  vision  of  chapter  eight  which  had  been  left  unex- 
plained, namely,  that  relating  to  time, — the.period  of  the  2300 
day?;  therefore,  the  angel,  in  resuming  his  explanation, 
dwells  exclusively  upon  the  subject  of  time: — 

"Seventy  weeks  are  determined  upon  thy  people  and 
upon  thy  holy  city.  .  .  .  Know  therefore  and  under- 
st;md,  that  from  the  going  forth  of  the  commandment  to 
restore  and  to  build  Jerusalem  unto  the  Messiah  the  Prince 

1  Dan.  9  : 22,  23,  25-27, 


326  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


shall  be  seven  weeks,  and  threescore  and  two  weeks:  the 
street  shall  be  built  again,  and  the  wall,  even  in  troublous 
times.  And  after  threescore  and  two  weeks  shall  Messiah 
be  cut  off,  but  not  for  himself.  .  .  .  And  he  shall  confirm 
the  covenant  with  many  for  one  week ;  and  in  the  midst  of 
the  week  he  shall  cause  the  sacrifice  and  the  oblation  to 
cease." 

The  angel  had  been  sent  to  Daniel  for  the  express  pur- 
pose of  explaining  to  him  the  point  which  he  had  failed  to 
understand  in  the  vision  of  the  eighth  chapter,  the  state- 
ment relative  to  time, — "Unto  two  thousand  and  three 
hundred  days;  then  shall  the  sanctuary  be  cleansed."  After 
bidding  Daniel  "understand  the  matter,  and  consider  the 
vision,"  the  very  first  words  of  the  angel  are,  "  Seventy  weeks 
are  determined  upon  thy  people  and  upon  thy  holy  city." 
The  word  here  translated  "  determined,"  literally  signifies 
"  cut  off."  Seventy  weeks,  representing  490  years,  are  declared 
by  the  angel  to  be  cut  off,  as  specially  pertaining  to  the  Jews. 
But  from  what  were  they  cut  off?  As  the  2300  days  was 
the  only  period  of  time  mentioned  in  chapter  eight,  it  must 
be  the  period  from  which  the  seventy  weeks  were  cut  off; 
the  seventy  weeks  must  therefore  be  a  part  of  the  2300  days, 
and  the  two  periods  must  begin  together.  The  seventy  weeks 
were  declared  by  the  angel  to  date  from  the  going  forth  of 
the  commandment  to  restore  and  build  Jerusalem.  If  the 
date  of  this  commandment  could  be  found,  then  the  starting- 
point  for  the  great  period  of  the  2300  days  would  be  ascer- 
tained. 

In  the  seventh  chapter  of  Ezra  the  decree  is  found.1  In 
its  eompletest  form  it  was  issued  by  Artaxerxes,  king  of  JVr- 
sia,  B.  c.  457.  But  in  Ezra  6:14  the  house  of  the  Lord  at 
Jerusalem  is  said  to  have  been  built  "according  to  the  com- 
mandment [margin,  decree]  of  Cyrus,  and  Darius,  and 
Artaxerxes  king  of  Persia."  These  three  kinjjs,  in  originat- 
ing, re-aHinniiio\  and  completing  the  decree,  brought  it  to 
tin-  perfection  re<juired  by  the  prophecy  to  mark  the  begin- 

1  Kzra  7  :  12-26. 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  327 

ning  of  the  2300  years.  Taking  B.  c.  457,  the  time  when 
the  decree  was  completed,  as  the  date  of  the  commandment, 
every  specification  of  the  prophecy  concerning  the  seventy 
weeks  was  seen  to  have  been  fulfilled. 

"  From  the  going  forth  of  the  commandment  to  restore 
and  to  build  Jerusalem  unto  the  Messiah  the  Prince  shall  be 
seven  weeks,  and  threescore  and  two  weeks," — namely,  sixty- 
nine  weeks,  or  483  years.  The  decree  of  Artaxerxes  went 
into  effect  in  the  autumn  of  B.  e.  457.  From  this  date,  483 
years  extend  to  the  autumn  of  A.  D.  27.1  At  that  time  this 
prophecy  was  fulfilled.  The  word  "Messiah  "  signifies  "  the 
Anointed  One."  In  the  autumn  of  A.  D.  27,  Christ  was  bap- 
tized by  John,  and  received  the  anointing  of  the  Spirit.  The 
apostle  Peter  testifies  that  "God  anointed  Jesus  of  Nazareth 
with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  power."2  And  the  Saviour 
himself  declared,  "The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,  be- 
cause he  hath  anointed  me  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  poor."3 
After  his  baptism  he  came  into  Galilee,  "preaching  the  gos- 
pel of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  saying,  The  time  is  fulfilled."4 

"And  he  shall  confirm  the  covenant  with  many  *for  one 
week."  The  "  week  "  here  brought  to  view  is  the  last  one  of 
the  seventy ;  it  is  the  last  seven  years  of  the  period,  allotted 
especially  1o  the  Jews.  During  this  time,  extending  from 
A.  D.  27  to  A.  D.  34,  Christ,  at  first  in  person,  and  afterward 
by  his  disciples,  extended  the  gospel  invitation  especially  to 
the  Jews.  As  the  apostles  went  forth  with  the  good  tidings 
of  the  kingdom,  the  Saviour's  direction  was,  "Go  not  into 
the  way  of  the  Gentiles,  and  into  any  city  of  the  Samaritans 
enter  ye  not;  but  go  rather  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house 
of  Israel."5 

"And  in  the  midst  of  the  week  he  shall  cause  the  sacri- 
fice and  the  oblation  to  cease."  In  A.  D.  31,  three  and  a  half 
years  after  his  baptism,  our  Lord  was  crucified.  With  the 
great  sacrifice  offered  upon  Calvary,  ended  that  s}^stem  of 
offerings  which  for  four  thousand  years  had  pointed  forward 

lSee  Appendix,  Note  3;  also  diagram  opposite  p.  328.     2  Acts  10  : 38. 
8  Luke  4:18.  *  Mark  1  : 14,  15.  5  Matt.  10  : 5,  $. 


328  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

to  the  Lamb  of  God.  Type  had  met  antitype,  and  all  the 
sacrifices  and  oblations  of  the  ceremonial  system  were  there 
to  cease. 

The  seventy  weeks,  or  490  years,  especially  allotted  to  the 
Jews,  ended,  as  we  have  seen,  in  A.  D.  34.  At  that  time, 
through  the  action  of  the  Jewish  Sanhedrim,  the  nation 
scaled  its  rejection  of  the  gospel,  by  the  martyrdom  of 
Stephen  and  the  persecution  of  the  followers  of  Christ.  Then 
the  message  of  salvation,  no  longer  restricted  to  the  chosen 
people,  was  given  to  the  world.  The  disciples,  forced  by 
persecution  to  flee  from  Jerusalem,  "  went  everywhere  preach- 
ing the  Word."  "  Philip  went  down  to  the  city  of  Samaria, 
and  preached  Christ  unto  them." l  Peter,  divinely  guided, 
opened  the  gospel  to  the  centurion  of  Cesarea,  the  God- 
fearing Cornelius;  and  the  ardent  Paul,  won  to  the  faith  of 
Christ,  was  commissioned  to  carry  the  glad  tidings  "far 
hence  unto  the  Gentiles." 1 

Thus  far  every  specification  of  the  prophecy  is  strikingly 
fulfilled,  and  the  beginning  of  the  seventy  weeks  is  fixed 
beyond  question  at  B.  c.  457,  and  their  expiration  in  A.  D.  34. 
From  this  data  there  is  no  difficulty  in  finding  the  termina- 
tiou  of  the  2300  days.  The  seventy  weeks — 490  days — hav- 
ing been  cut  off  from  the  2300,  there  were  1810  days 
remaining.  After  the  end  of  490  days,  the  1810  days  were 
still  to  be  fulfilled.  From  A.  D.  34,  1810  years  extend  to 
1844.  Consequently  the  2300  days  of  Dan.  8 : 14  terminate 
in  1844.  At  the  expiration  of  this  great  prophetic  period, 
upon  the  testimony  of  the  angel  of  God,  "the  sanctuary  shall 
be  cleansed."  Thus  the  time  of  the  cleansing  of  the  sanct- 
uary— which  was  almost  universally  believed  to  take  place 
at  the  second  advent — was  definitely  pointed  out. 

Miller  and  his  associates  at  first  believed  that  the  2300  days 
would  terminate  in  the  spring  of  1844,  whereas  the  prophecy 
points  to  the  autumn  of  that  year.2  The  misapprehension 
of  this  point  brought  disappointment  and  perplexity  to 

:  4, 5;  22  : 21.     *  Sec  diagram,  next  page;  ,iU>  Appendix,  Note  3. 


>>>>>> p 

pp 


%  f  I  I 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  329 

those  who  had  fixed  upon  the  earlier  date  as  the  time  of  the 
Lord's  coming.  But  this  did  not  in  the  least  affect  the 
strength  of  the  argument  showing  that  the  2300  days  termi- 
nated in  the  year  1844,  and  that  the  great  event  represented 
by  the  cleansing  of  the  sanctuary  must  then  take  place. 

Entering  upon  the  study  of  the  Scriptures  as  he  had  done, 
in  order  to  prove  that  they  were  a  revelation  from  God, 
Miller  had  not,  at  the  outset,  the  slightest  expectation  of 
reaching  the  conclusion  at  which  lie  had  now  arrived.  He 
himself  could  hardly  credit  the  results  of  his  investigation. 
But  the  Scripture  evidence  was  too  clear  and  forcible  to  be 
sot  aside. 

He  had  devoted  two  years  to  the  study  of  the  Bible,  when, 
in  1818,  lie  reached  the  solemn  conviction  that  in  about 
twenty-live  years  Christ  would  appear  for  the  redemption  of 
his  people.  "  I  need  not  speak,"  says  Miller,  "of  the  joy  that 
filled  my  heart  in  view  of  the  delightful  prospect,  nor  of  the 
ardent  longings  of  my  soul  for  a  participation  in  the  joys  of 
the  redeemed.  The  Bible  was  now  to  me  a  new  book.  It 
was  indeed  a  feast  of  reason;  all  that  was  dark,  mystical,  or 
obscure,  to  me,  in  its  teachings,  had  been  dissipated  from 
my  mind  before  the  clear  li^ht  that  now  dawned  from  its 
sacred  pages;  and  oh,  how  bright  and  glorious  the  truth 
appeared!  All  the  contradictions  and  inconsistencies  I  had 
before  found  in  the  Word  were  gone;  and,  although  there 
were  many  portions  of  which  I  was  not  satisfied  that  I  had 
a  full  understanding,  yet  so  much  light  had  emanated  from 
it  to  the  illumination  of  my  before  darkened  mind,  that  F 
felt  a  delight  in  studying  the  Scriptures  which  I  had  not 
before  supposed  could  be  derived  from  its  teachings." 

'( With  the  solemn  conviction  that  such  momentous  events 
were  predicted  in  the  Scriptures  to  be  fulfilled  in  so  short  a 
space  of  time,  the  question  came  home  to  me  with  mighty 
power  regarding  my  duty  to  the  world  in  view  of  the  evi- 
dence that  had  affected  my  own  mind."  He  could  not  but 
feel  that  it  was  his  duty  to  impart  to  others  the  light  which 


330  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


lie  had  received.  He  expected  to  encounter  opposition  from 
the  ungodly,  but  was  confident  that  all  Christians  would 
rejoice  in  the  hope  of  meeting  the  Saviour  whom  they  pro- 
fessed to  love.  His  only  fear  was,  that  in  their  great  joy  at 
the  prospect  of  glorious  deliverance,  so  soon  to  be  consum- 
mated, many  would  receive  the  doctrine  without  sufficiently 
examining  the  Scriptures  in  demonstration  of  its  truth.  He 
therefore  hesitated  to  present  it,  lest  he  should  be  in  error, 
and  be  the  means  of  misleading  others.  He  was  thus  led  to 
review  the  evidences  in  support  of  the  conclusions  at  which 
he  had  arrived,  and  to  consider  carefully  every  difficulty 
which  presented  itself  to  his  mind.  He  found  that  objec- 
tions vanished  before  the  light  of  God's  Word,  as  mist  before 
the  rays  of  the  sun.  Five  years  spent  thus,  left  him  fully 
convinced  of  the  correctness  of  his  position. 

And  now  the  duty  of  making  known  to  others  what  he 
believed  to  be  so  clearly  taught  in  the  Scriptures,  ur«>vd 
itself  with  new  force  upon  him.  "  When  I  was  about  my 
business,"  he  said,  "  it  was  continually  ringing  in  my  ears, 
Go  and  tell  the  world  of  their  danger.  This  text  was  con- 
stantly occurring  to  me:  'When  I  say  unto  the  wicked,  O 
wicked  man,  thou  shalt  surely  die ;  if  thou  dost  not  speak  to 
warn  the  wicked  from  his  way,  that  wicked  man  shall  die  in 
his  iniquity;  but  his  blood  will  I  require  at  thine  hand. 
Nevertheless,  if  thou  warn  the  wicked  of  his  way  to  turn 
from  it;  if  he  do  not  turn  from  his  way,  he  shall  die  in  his 
iniquity;  but  thou  hast  delivered  thy  soul.'1  I  felt  that  if 
the  wicked  could  be  effectually  warned,  multitudes  of  them 
would  repent;  and  that  if  they  were  not  warned,  their  blood 
might  be  required  at  my  hand." 

He  began  to  present  his  views  in  private  as  he  had  oppor- 
tunity, praying  that  some  minister  might  feel  their  force 
and  devote  himself  to  their  promulgation.  But  he  could 
not  banish  the  conviction  that  he  had  a  personal  duty  to 
perform  in  giving  4he  warning.  The  words  were  ever  nvur- 
ring  to  his  mind,  "Go  and  tell  it  to  the  world;  their  blood 

'Eze.  33:8,  9. 


AN  A MERICAN  REFORMER.  331 


will  I  require  at  thy  hand."  For  nine  years  he  waited,  the 
burden  still  pressing  upon  his  soul,  until  in  1831  he  for  the 
first  time  publicly  gave  the  reasons  of  his  faith. 

As  Elisha  wTas  called  from  following  his  oxen  in  the  field, 
to  receive  the  mantle  of  consecration  to  the  prophetic  office, 
so  was  William  Miller  called  to  leave  his  plow,  and  open  to 
the  people  the  mysteries  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  With 
trembling  he  entered  upon  his  work,  leading  his  hearers 
down,  step  by  step,  through  the  prophetic  periods  to  the 
second  appearing  of  Christ.  With  every  effort  he  gained 
strength  and  courage  as  he  saw  the  widespread  interest 
excited  by  his  words. 

It  was  only  at  the  solicitation  of  his  brethren,  in  whose 
words  he  heard  the  call  of  God,  that  Miller  consented  to 
present  his  views  in  public.  He  was  now  fifty  years  of  age, 
unaccustomed  to  public  speaking,  and  burdened  with  a 
sense  of  unfitness  for  the  work  before  him.  But  from  the 
first  his  labors  were  blessed  in  a  remarkable  manner  to  the 
salvation  of  souls.  His  first  lecture  was  followed  by  a  relig- 
ious awakening,  in  which  thirty  entire  families,  with  the 
exception  of  two  persons,  were  converted.  He  was  immedi- 
ately urged  to  speak  in  other  places,  and  in  nearly  every 
place  his  labor  resulted  in  a  revival  of  the  work  of  God. 
Sinners  were  converted,  Christians  were  roused  to  greater 
consecration,  and  deists  and  infidels  were  led  to  acknowledge 
the  truth  of  the  Bible  and  the  Christian  religion.  The 
testimony  of  those  among  whom  he  labored  was:  "A  class  of 
minds  are  reached  by  him  that  are  not  within  the  influence 
of  other  men."  "His  preaching  is  calculated  to  arouse  the 
public  mind  to  the  great  things  of  religion,  and  to  check  the 
growing  worldliness  and  sensuality  of  the  age." 

In  nearly  every  town  there  were  scores,  in  some,  hundreds, 
converted  as  the  result  of  his  preaching.  In  many  places 
Protestant  churches  of  nearly  all  denominations  were  thrown 
open  to  him ;  and  the  invitations  to  labor  usually  came  from 
the  ministers  of  the  several  congregations.  It  was  his 


332  77/77    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


invariable  rule  not  to  labor  in  any  place  to  which  he  had 
not  been  invited,  yet  he  soon  found  himself  unable  to  comply 
with  half  the  requests  that  poured  in  upon  him. 

Many  who  did  not  accept  his  views  as  to  the  exact  time  of 
the  second  advent,  were  convinced  of  the  certainty  and 
nearness  of  Christ's  coming  and  their  need  of  preparation. 
In  some  of  the  large  cities  his  work  produced  a  marked 
impression.  Liquor-dealers  abandoned  the  traffic,  and 
turned  their  shops  into  meeting-rooms;  gambling  dens  were 
broken  up,  infidels,  deists,  Universalists,  and  the  most 
abandoned  profligates  were  reformed — some  of  whom  had 
not  entered  a  house  of  worship  for  years.  Prayer-meetings 
were  established  by  the  various  denominations,  in  different 
quarters,  at  almost  every  hour,  business  men  assembling  at 
midday  for  prayer  and  praise.  There  was  no  extravagant 
excitement,  but  an  almost  universal  solemnity  on  the  minds 
of  the  people.  His  work,  like  that  of  the  early  reformers, 
tended  rather  to  convince  the  understanding  and  arouse  the 
conscience  than  merely  to  excite  the  emotions. 

In  1833  Miller  received  a  license  to  preach,  from  the  Bap- 
tist Church,  of  which  he  was  a  member.  A  large  number  of 
the  ministers  of  his  denomination  also  approved  his  work, 
and  it  was  with  their  formal  sanction  that  he  continued  his 
labors. 

He  traveled  and  preached  unceasingly,  though  his  per- 
sonal labors  were  confined  principally  to  the  New  England 
and  Middle  States.  For  several  years  his  expenses  were  met 
wholly  from  his  own  private  purse,  and  he  never  afterward 
received  enough  to  meet  the  expense  of  travel  to  the  places 
where  he  was  invited.  Thus  his  public  labors,  so  far  from 
being  a  pecuniary  benefit,  were  a  heavy  tax  upon  his  prop- 
erty, which  gradually  diminished  during  this  period  of  his 
life.  He  was  the  father  of  a  large  family,  but  as  they  were 
all  frugal  and  industrious,  his  farm  sufficed  for  their  main- 
tenance as  well  as  his  own. 

In  1833,  two  years  after  Miller  began  to  present  in  pub- 


AN  AMERICAN-  REFORMER.  333 


lie  the  evidences  of  Christ's  soon  coming,  the  last  of  the 
signs  appeared  which  were  promised  by  the  Saviour  as 
tokens  of  his  second  advent.  Said  Jesus,  "  The  stars  shall 
fall  from  heaven." l  And  John  in  the  Revelation  declared, 
as  he  beheld  in  vision  the  scenes  that  herald  the  day  of  God: 
"  The  stars  of  heaven  fell  unto  the  earth,  even  as  a  fig-tree 
casteth  her  untimely  figs,  when  she  is  shaken  of  a  mighty 
wind/'2  This  prophecy  received  a  striking  and  impressive 
fulfillment  in  the  great  meteoric  shower  of  November  13, 
1833.  That  was  the  most  extensive  and  wonderful  display 
of  falling  stars  which  has  ever  been  recorded ;  "the  whole 
firmament,  over  all  the  United  States,  being  then,  for  hours, 
in  fiery  commotion.  No  celestial  phenomenon  has  ever 
occurred  in  this  country,  since  its  first  settlement,  which  was 
viewed  with  such  intense  admiration  by  one  class  in  the 
community,  or  such  dread  and  alarm  by  another."  "Its 
sublimity  and  awful  beauty  still  linger  in  many  minds. 
.  .  .  Never  did  rain  fall  much  thicker  than  the  meteors 
fell  toward  the  earth;  east,  west,  north,  and  south,  it  was  the 
same.  In  a  word,  the  whole  heavens  seemed  in  motion. 
.  .  .  The  display,  as  described  in  Professor  Silliman's 
journal,  was  seen  all  over  North  America.  .  .  .  From 
two  o'clock  until  broad  daylight,  the  sky  being  perfectly 
serene  and  cloudless,  an  incessant  play  of  dazzlingly  brill- 
iant luminosities  was  kept  up  in  the  whole  heavens." 

"  No  language  indeed  can  come  up  to  the  splendor  of  that 
magnificent  display;  no  one  who  did  not  witness  it  can  form 
an  adequate  conception  of  its  glory.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
whole  starry  heavens  had  congregated  at  one  point  near  the 
zenith,  and  were  simultaneously  shooting  forth,  with  the 
velocity  of  lightning,  to  every  part  of  the  horizon;  and  yet 
they  were  not  exhausted — thousands  swiftly  followed  in  the 
track  of  thousands,  as  if  created  for  the  occasion."  "A 
more  correct  picture  of  a  fig-tree  casting  its  figs  when  blown 
by  a  mighty  wind,  it  is  not  possible  to  behold." 

1  Matt.  24:29.  'Rev.  6:13. 


334  777 K   (iRKA'l    CONTROVERSY. 

On  the  day  following  its  appearance,  Henry  Dana  Ward 
wrote  thus  of  the  wonderful  phenomenon:  "  No  philosopher 
or  scholar  has  told  or  recorded  an  event,  I  suppose,  like  thai 
of  yesterday  morning.  A  prophet  eighteen  hundred  years 
ago  foretold  it  exactly,  if  we  will  be  at  the  trouble  of  under- 
standing stars  falling  to  mean  falling  stars,  in  the  only 
sense  in  which  it  is  possible  to  be  literally  true." 

Thus  was  displayed  the  last  of  those  signs  of  his  coming, 
concerning  which  Jesus  bade  his  disciples,  "When  ye  shall 
see  all  these  things,  know  that  it  is  near,  even  at  the  doors."1 
After  these  signs,  John  beheld,  as  the  great  event  next  im- 
pending, the  heavens  departing  as  a  scroll,  while  the  earth 
quaked,  mountains  and  islands  removed  out  of  their  places, 
and  the  wicked  in  terror  sought  to  flee  from  the  presence  of 
the  Son  of  man. 

Many  who  witnessed  the  falling  of  the  stars,  looked  upon 
it  as  a  herald  of  the  coming  Judgment, — •"  an  awful  type,  a 
sure  forerunner,  a  merciful  sign,  of  that  great  and  dreadful 
day."  Thus  the  attention  of  the  people  was  directed  to  the 
fulfillment  of  prophecy,  and  many  were  led  to  give  heed  to 
the  warning  of  the  second  advent. 

In  the  year  1840,  another  remarkable  fulfillment  of  proph- 
ecy excited  widespread  interest.  Two  years  before,  Josiah 
Litch,  one  of  the  leading  ministers  preaching  the  second 
advent,  published  an  exposition  of  Revelation  9,  predicting 
the  fall  of  the  Ottoman  empire,  and  specifying  not  only  the 
year  but  the  very  day  on  which  this  would  take  place.  Ac- 
cording to  this  exposition,  which  was  purely  a  matter  of 
calculation  on  the  prophetic  periods  of  Scripture,  the  Turk- 
ish government  would  surrender  its  independence  on  the 
eleventh  day  of  August,  1840.  The  prediction  was  widely 
published,  and  thousands  watched  the  course  of  events  with 
eager  interest. 

At  the  very  time  specified,  Turkey,  through  her  ambas- 
sadors, accepted  the  protection  of  the  allied  powers  of  Eu- 
rope, and  thus  placed  herself  under  the  control  of  Christian 

1  Matt.  24  :  33. 


AN  .1  Mr.  UK  *AN  IWftRMKK.  335 

nations.  The  event  exactly  fulfilled  the  prediction.  When 
it  became  known,  multitudes  were  convinced  of  the  correct- 
ness of  the  principles  of  prophetic  interpretation  adopted  by 
Miller  and  his  associates,  and  a  wonderful  impetus  was  given 
to  the  Advent  movement.  Men  of  learning  and  position 
united  with  Miller,  both  in  preaching  and  publishing  his 
views,  and  from  1840  to  1844  the  work  rapidly  extended. 

William  Miller  possessed  strong  mental  powers,  disciplined 
by  thought  and  study;  and  he  added  to  these  the  wisdom  of 
Heaven,  by  connecting  himself  with  the  Source  of  wisdom. 
He  was  a  man  of  sterling  worth,  who  could  not  but  command 
respect  and  esteem  wherever  integrity  of  character  and 
moral  excellence  were  valued.  Uniting  true  kindness  of 
heart  with  Christian  humility  and  the  power  of  self-control, 
he  was  attentive  and  affable  to  all,  ready  to  listen  to  the 
opinions  of  others,  and  to  weigh  their  arguments.  Without 
passion  or  excitement,  he  tested  all  theories  and  doctrines  by 
the  Word  of  God ;  and  his  sound  reasoning,  and  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  enabled  him  to  refute  error  and 
expose  falsehood. 

Yet  he  did  not  prosecute  his  work  without  bitter  opposi- 
tion. As  with  earlier  reformers,  the  truths  which  he  pre- 
sented were  not  received .  with  favor  by  popular  religious 
teachers.  As  these  could  not  maintain  their  position  by  the 
Scriptures,  they  were  driven  to  resort  to  the  sayings  and 
doctrines  of  men,  to  the  traditions  of  the  Fathers.  But  the 
Word  of  God  was  the  only  testimony  accepted  by  the 
preachers  of  the  Advent  truth.  "The  Bible,  and  the  Bible 
only,"  was  their  watchword.  The  lack  of  Scripture  argu- 
ment on  the  part  of  their  opponents  was  supplied  by  ridicule 
and  scoffing.  Time,  means,  and  talents  were  employed  in 
maligning  those  whose  only  offense  was  that  they  looked 
with  joy  for  the  return  of  their  Lord,  and  were  striving  to 
live  holy  lives,  and  to  exhort  others  to  prepare  for  his 
appearing. 

Earnest  were  the  efforts  put  forth  to  draw  away  the  minds 


330  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  the  people  from  the  subject  of  the  second  advent.  It  was 
made  to  appear  a  sin,  something  of  which  men  should  be 
ashamed,  to  study  the  prophecies  which  relate  to  the  coming 
of  Christ  and  the  end  of  the  world.  Thus  the  popular  min- 
istry undermined  faith  in  the  Word  of  God.  Their  teaching 
made  men  infidels,  and  many  took  license  to  walk  after 
their  own  ungodly  lusts.  Then  the  authors  of  the  evil 
charged  it  all  upon  Adveiitists. 

While  drawing  crowded  houses  of  intelligent  and  attentive 
hearers,  Miller's  name  was-  seldom  mentioned  by  the  relig- 
ious press  except  by  way  of  ridicule  or  denunciation.  The 
careless  and  ungodly,  emboldened  by  the  position  of  religious 
teachers,  resorted  to  opprobrious  epithets,  to  base  and  blas- 
phemous witticisms,  in  their  efforts  to  heap  contumely  upon 
him  and  his  work.  The  gray-headed  man  who  had  left  a  com- 
fortable home  to  travel  at  his  own  expense  from  city  to  city, 
from  town  to  town,  toiling  unceasingly  to  bear  to  the  world 
the  solemn  warning  of  the  Judgment  near,  was  sneeringly 
denounced  as  a  fanatic,  a  liar,  a  speculating  knave. 

The  ridicule,  falsehood,  and  abuse  heaped  upon  him 
called  forth  indignant  remonstrance,  even  from  the  secular 
press.  To  treat  a  subject  of  such  overwhelming  majesty  and 
fearful  consequences,  with  lightness  and  ribaldry,  was  de- 
clared by  worldly  men  to  be  not  merely  to  sport  with  the 
feelings  of  its  advocates,  but  "to  make  a  jest  of  the  day  of 
Judgment,  to  scoff  at  God  himself,  and  to  mock  the  terrors 
of  his  Judgment-bar." 

The  instigator  of  all  evil  sought  not  only  to  counteract 
the  effect  of  the  Advent  message,  but  to  destroy  the  mes- 
senger himself.  Miller  made  a  practical  application  of 
Scripture  truth  to  the  hearts  of  his  hearers,  reproving  their 
sins,  and  disturbing  their  self-satisfaction,  and  his  plain  and 
cutting  words  aroused  their  enmity.  The  opposition  man- 
ifested by  church-members  toward  his  message,  emboldened 
the  baser  classes  to  go  to  greater  lengths;  and  enemies 
plotted  to  take  his  life  as  he  should  leave  the  place  of 


A.N  AMi:i;i<\\\  UK  FORMER.  337 


meeting.  But  holy  angels  were  in  the  throng,  and  one  of 
these,  in  the  form  of  a  man,  took  the  arm  of  this  servant 
of  the  Lord,  and  led  him  in  safety  from  the  angry  mob. 
His  work  was  not  yet  done,  and  Satan  and  his  emissaries 
were  disappointed  in  their  purpose. 

Despite  all  opposition,  the  interest  in  the  Advent  movement 
had  continued  to  increase.  From  scores  and  hundreds,  the 
congregations  had  grown  to  as  many  thousands.  Large 
accessions  had  been  made  to  the  various  churches,  but  after 
a  time  the  spirit  of  opposition  was  manifested  even  against 
these  converts,  and  the  churches  began  to  take  disciplinary 
steps  with  those  who  had  embraced  Miller's  views.  This 
action  called  forth  a  response  from  his  pen,  in  an  address  to 
Christians  of  all  denominations,  urging  that  if  his  doctrines 
were  false  he  should  be  shown  his  error  from  the  Scriptures. 

"What  have  we  believed,"  he  said,  "that  we  have  not  been 
commanded  to  believe  by  the  Word  of  God,  which  you 
yourselves  allow  is  the  rule,  and  the  only  rule,  of  our  faith 
and  practice?  What  have  we  done  that  should  call  down 
such  virulent  denunciations  against  us  from  pulpit  and  press, 
and  give  you  just  cause  to  exclude  us  [Adventists]  from 
your  church  and  fellowship?"  "If  we  are  wrong,  pray 
show  us  wherein  consists  our  wrong.  Show  us  from  the 
Word  of  God  that  we  are  in  error;  we  have  had  ridicule 
enough;  that  can  never  convince  us  that  we  are  in  the  wrong; 
the  WTord  of  God  alone  can  change  our  views.  Our  conclu- 
sions have  been  formed  deliberately  and  prayerfully,  as  we 
have  seen  the  evidence  in  the  Scriptures." 

From  age  to  age  the  warnings  which  God  has  sent  to  the 
world  by  his  servants  have  been  received  with  like  incre- 
dulity and  unbelief.  When  the  iniquity  of  the  antediluvians 
moved  him  to  bring  a  flood  of  waters  upon  the  earth,  he  first 
made  known  to  them  his  purpose,  that  they  might  have 
opportunity  to  turn  from  their  evil  ways.  For  a  hundred 
and  twenty  years  was  sounded  in  their  ears  the  warning  to 
repent,  lest  the  wrath  of  God  be  manifested  in  their  destruc- 


338  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


tion.  But  the  message  seemed  to  them  an  idle  tale,  and 
they  believed  it  not.  Emboldened  in  their  wickedness,  they 
mocked  the  messenger  of  God,  made  light  of  his  entreaties, 
and  even  accused  him  of  presumption.  How  dare  one 
man  stand  up  against  all  the  great  men  of  the  earth?  If 
Noah's  message  were  true,  why  did  not  all  the  world  see 
it  and  believe  it?  One  man's  assertion  against  the  wisdom 
of  thousands!  They  would  not  credit  the  warning,  nor 
would  they  seek  shelter  in  the  ark. 

Scoffers  pointed  to  the  things  of  nature, — to  the  unvarying 
succession  of  the  seasons,  to  the  blue  skies  that  had  never 
poured  out  rain,  to  the  green,  fields  refreshed  by  the  soft 
dews  of  night, — and  they  cried  out,  "Doth  he  not  speak 
parables?"  In  contempt  they  declared  the  preacher  of 
righteousness  to  be  a  wild  enthusiast;  and  they  went  on, 
more  eager  in  their  pursuit  of  pleasure,  more  intent  upon 
their  evil  ways,  than  ever  before.  But  their  unbelief  did 
not  hinder  the  predicted  event.  God  bore  long  with  their 
wickedness,  giving  them  ample  opportunity  for  repentance; 
but  at  the  appointed  time  his  judgments  were  visited  upon 
the  rejecters  of  his  mercy. 

Christ  declares  that  there  will  exist  similar  unbelief  con- 
cerning his  second  coming.  As  the  people  of  Noah's  day 
"  knew  not  until  the  flood  came,  and  took  them  all  away;  so," 
in  the  words  of  our  Saviour,  "shall  also  the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  man  be."1  When  the  professed  people  of  God  are 
uniting  with  the  world,  living  as  they  live,  and  joining  with 
them  in  forbidden  pleasure;  when  the  luxury  of  the  world 
becomes  the  luxury  of  the  church;  when  the  marriage  bells 
are  chiming,  and  all  are  looking  forward  to  many  years  of 
worldly  prosperity, — then,  suddenly  as  the  lightning  flashes 
from  the  heavens,  will  come  the  end  of  their  bright  visions 
and  delusive  hopes. 

As  God  sent  his  servant  to  warn  the  world  of  the  coming 
flood,  so  he  sent  chosen  messengers  to  make  known  the 
nearness  of  the  final  Judgment.  And  as  Noah's  coiiteiu- 

.  24:39. 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  339 


poraries  laughed  to  scorn  the  predictions  of  the  preacher  of 
righteousness,  so  in  Miller's  day  many,  even  of  the  professed 
people  of  God,  scoffed  at  the  words  of  warning. 

And  why  were  the  doctrine  and  preaching  of  Christ's 
second  coming  so  unwelcome  to  the  churches?  While  to 
the  wicked  the  advent  of  the  Lord  brings  woe  and  desola- 
tion, to  the  righteous  it  is  fraught  with  joy  and  hope.  This 
givut  truth  had  been  the  consolation  of  God's  faithful  ones 
through  all  the  ages;  why  had  it  become,  like  its  Author, 
u  a  stone  of  stumbling  and  a  rock  of  offense  "  to  his  professed 
people?  It  was  our  Lord  himself  who  promised  his  disci- 
ples, "If  I  go  and  prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again, 
and  receive  you  unto  myself."1  It  was  the  compassionate 
Saviour,  who,  anticipating  the  loneliness  and  sorrow  of  his 
followers,  commissioned  angels  to  comfort  them  with  the 
assurance  that  he  would  come  again  in  person,  even  as  he 
wont  into  heaven.  As  the  disciples  stood  gazing  intently 
u  pward  to  catch  the  last  glimpse  of  him  whom  they  loved, 
their  attention  was  arrested  by  the  words,  "  Ye  men  of  Gali- 
lee, why  stand  ye  gazing  up  into  heaven?  this  same  Jesus, 
which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven,  shall  so  come  in 
like  manner  as  ye  have  seen  him  go  into  heaven."2  Hope 
was  kindled  afresh  by  the  angels'  message.  The  disciples 
"returned  to  Jerusalem  with  great  joy,  and  were  continually 
in  the  temple,  praising  and  blessing  God."3  They  were  not 
rejoicing  because  Jesus  had  been  separated  from  them  and 
they  were  left  to  struggle  with  the  trials  and  temptations  of 
the  world,  but  because  of  the  angels'  assurance  that  he  would 
come  again. 

The  proclamation  of  Christ's  coming  should  now  be,  as 
when  made  by  the  angels  to  the  shepherds  of  Bethlehem, 
good  tidings  of  great  joy.  Those  who  really  love  the  Sav- 
iour cannot  but  hail  with  gladness  the  announcement 
founded  upon  the  Word  of  God,  that  he  in  whom  their  hopes 
of  eternal  life  are  centered,  is  coming  again,  not  to  be  in- 

i  John  14 : 3.  2  Acts  1:11.  s Luke  '24  : 52,  53. 


340  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


suited,  despised,  and  rejected,  as  at  his  first  advent,  but  in 
power  and  glory,  to  redeem  his  people.  It  is  those  who  do 
not  love  the  Saviour,  that  desire  him  to  remain  away;  and 
there  can  be  no  more  conclusive  evidence  that  the  churches 
liave  departed  from  God  than  the  irritation  and  animosity 
excited  by  this  Heaven-sent  message. 

Those  who  accepted  the  Advent  doctrine  were  roused  to 
the  necessity  of  repentance  and  humiliation  before  God. 
Many  had  long  been  halting  between  Christ  and  the  world; 
"How  they  felt  that  it  was  time  to  take  a  stand.  The  things 
of  eternity  assumed  to  them  an  unwonted  reality.  Heaven 
was  brought  near,  and  they  felt  themselves  guilty  before 
God.  Christians  were  quickened  to  new  spiritual  life.  They 
were  made  to  feel  thai  time  was  short,  that  what  they  had 
to  do  for  their  fellow-men  must  be  done  quickly.  Earth 
receded,  eternity  seemed  to  open  before  them,  and  the  soul, 
with  all  that  pertains  to  its  immortal  weal  or  woe,  was  felt 
to  eclipse  every  temporal  object."  The  Spirit  of  God  rested 
upon  them,  and  gave  power  to  their  earnest  appeals  to  their 
/brethren,  as  well  as  to  sinners, to  prepare  for  the  day  of  God. 
The  silent  testimony  of  their  daily  life  was  a  constant  rebuke 
to  formal  and  unconsecrated  church-members.  These  did 
not  wish  to  be  disturbed  in  their  pursuit  of  pleasure,  their 
devotion  to  money-making,  and  their  ambition  for  worldly 
honor.  Hence  the  enmity  and  opposition  excited  against 
the  Advent  faith  and  those  who  proclaimed  it. 

As  the  arguments  from  the  prophetic-  periods  were  found 
to  be  impregnable,  opposers  endeavored  to  discourage  inves- 
tigation of  the  subject,  by  teaching  that  the  prophecies  were 
sealed.  Thus  Protestants  followed  in  the  steps  of  Romanists. 
While  the  papal  church  withholds  the  Bible  from  the  peo- 
ple, Protestant  churches  claimed  that  an  important  part  of 
the  sacred  Word — and  that  the  part  which  brings  to  view 
truths  specially  applicable  to  our  tim< — could  not  be  under- 
stood. 

Ministers   and    people    declared   that   the   prophecies   of 


AN  AMERICAN  REFORMER.  341 

Daniel  and  the  Revelation  were  incomprehensible  mysteries. 
But  Christ  directed  his  disciples  to  the  words  of  the  prophet 
Daniel  concerning  events  to  take  place  in  their  time,  and 
said,  "Whoso  readeth,  let  him  understand."1  And  the  asser- 
tion that  the  Revelation  is  a  mystery,  not  to  be  understood, 
is  contradicted  by  the  very  title  of  the  book :  "  The  Revela- 
tion of  Jesus  Christ,  which  God  gave  unto  him,  to  show  unto 
his  servants  things  which  must  shortly  come  to  pass .... 
Blessed  is  he  that  readeth,  and  they  that  hear  the  words  of 
this  prophecy,  and  hep  those  things  which  are  written 
therein;  for  the  time  is  at  hand."* 

Says  the  prophet:  "Blessed  is  he  thai  readeth" — thorn  arc 
those  who  will  not  read;  the  blessing  is  not  for  them.  "And 
they  that  hear" — there  are  some,  also,  who  refuse  to  hear 
anything  concerning  the  prophecies;  the  blessing  is  not  for 
this  class.  "  And  keep  those  things  which  are  written  therein  " 
— many  refuse  to  heed  the  warnings  and  instructions  con- 
tained in  the  Revelation.  None  of  these  can  claim  the  bless- 
ing promised.  All  who  ridicule  the  subjects  of  the  prophecy, 
and  mock  at  the  symbols  here  solemnly  given,  all  who 
refuse  to  reform  their  lives,  and  prepare  for  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  man,  will  be  unblest. 

In  view  of  the  testimony  of  Inspiration,  how  dare  men 
teach  that  the  Revelation  is  a  mystery,  beyond  the  reach  of 
human  understanding?  It  is  a  mystery  revealed,  a  book 
opened.  The  study  of  the  Revelation  directs  the  mind  to 
the  prophecies  of  Daniel,  and  both  present  most  important 
instruction,  given  of  God  to  men,  concerning  events  to  take 
place  at  the  close  of  this  world's  history. 

To  John  were  opened  scenes  of  deep  and  thrilling  interest 
in  the  experience  of  the  church.  He  saw  the  position, 
dangers,  conflicts,  arid  final  deliverance  of  the  people  of  God. 
He  records  the  closing  messages  which  are  to  ripen  the 
harvest  of  the  earth,  either  as  sheaves  for  the  heavenly  gar- 
ner or  as  fagots  for  the  fires  of  destruction.  Subjects  of  vast 

1  Matt.  ^4 : 15.  2  Rev.  1  : 1-3. 


342  THE   GREAT  .CONTROVERSY. 


importance  were  revealed  to  him,  especially  for  the  last 
church,  that  those  who  should  turn  from  error  to  truth 
might  be  instructed  concerning  the  perils  and  conflicts  be- 
fore them.  None  need  be  in  darkness  in  regard  to  what  is 
coming  upon  the  earth. 

Why,  then,  this  widespread  ignorance  concerning  an 
•important  part  of  Holy  Writ?  Why  this  general  reluctance 
to  investigate  its  teachings?  It  is  the  result  of  a  studied 
effort  of  the  prince  of  darkness  to  conceal  from  men  that 
which  reveals  his  deceptions.  For  this  reason,  Christ  the 
Revelator,  foreseeing  the  warfare  that  would  be  waged 
against  the  study  of  the  Revelation,  pronounced  a  blessing 
upon  all  who  should  read,  hear,  and  observe  the  words  of 
the  prophecy. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 


LIGHT  THROUGH  DARKNESS. 

THE  work  of  God  in  the  earth  presents,  from  age  to  age, 
a  striking  similarity  in  every  great  reformation  or  religious 
movement.  The  principles  of  God's  dealing  with  men  are 
ever  the  same.  The  important  movements  of  the  present 
have  their  parallel  in  those  of  the  past,  and  the  experience 
of  the  church  in  former  ages  has  lessons  of  great  value  for 
our  own  time. 

No  truth  is  more  clearly  taught  in  the  Bible  than  that 
God  by  his  Holy  Spirit  especially  directs  his  servants  on 
earth  in  the  great  movements  for  the  carrying  forward  of 
the  work  of  salvation.  Men  are  instruments  in  the  hand  of 
God,  employed  by  him  to  accomplish  his  purposes  of  grace 
and  mercy.  Each  has  his  part  to  act;  to  each  is  granted  a 
measure  of  light,  adapted  to  the  necessities  of  his  time,  and 
sufficient  to  enable  him  to  perform  the  work  which  God  has 
given  him  to  do.  But  no  man,  however  honored  of  Heaven, 
has  ever  attained  to  a  full  understanding  of  the  great  plan 
of  redemption,  or  even  to  a  perfect  appreciation  of  the 
divine  purpose  in  the  work  for  his  own  time.  Men  do  not 
fully  understand  what  God  would  accomplish  by  the  work 
which  he  gives  them  to  do ;  they  do  not  comprehend,  in  all 
its  bearings,  the  message  which  they  utter  in  his  name. 

•  "  Canst  thou  by  searching  find  out  God  ?  canst  thou  find 
out  the  Almighty  unto  perfection?"  "  My  thoughts  are  not 
your  thoughts,  neither  are  your  ways  my  ways,  saith  the 
Lord.  For  as  the  heavens  are  higher  than  the  earth,  so  are 
my  ways  higher  than  your  ways,  and  my  thoughts  than 
your  thoughts."  "I  am  God,  and  there  is  none  like  me, 

28          (343) 


344  THE    GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


declaring  the  end  from  the  beginning,  and  from  ancient 
times  the  things  that  are  not  yet  done."1 

Even  the  prophets  who  were  favored  with  the  special 
illumination  of  the  Spirit,  did  not  fully  comprehend  the 
import  of  the  revelations  committed  to  them.  The  meaning 
was  to  be  unfolded,  from  age  to  age,  as  the  people  of  God 
should  need  the  instruction  therein  contained. 

Peter,  writing  of  the  salvation  brought  to  light  through 
the  gospel,  says:  Of  this  salvation  "the  prophets  have  in- 
quired and  searched  diligently,  who  prophesied  of  the  grace 
that  should  come  unto  you;  searching  what,  or  what  manner 
of  time  the  Spirit  of  Christ  which  was  in  them  did  signify, 
when  it  testified  beforehand  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  and 
the  glory  that  should  follow.  Unto  whom  it  was  revealed, 
that  not  unto  themselves,  but  unto  us  they  did  minister." 2 

Yet  while  it  was  not  given  to  the  prophets  to  understand 
fully  the  things  revealed  to  them,  they  earnestly  sought 
to  obtain  all  the  light  which  God  had  been  pleased  to 
make  manifest.  They  "inquired  and  searched  diligently," 
"searching  what,  or  what  manner  of  time  the  Spirit  of 
Christ  which  was  in  them  did  signify."  What  a  lesson  to 
the  people  of  God  in  the  Christian  age,  for  whose  benefit 
these  prophecies  were  given  to  his  servants!  "Unto  whom 
it  was  revealed  that  not  unto  themselves,  but  unto  us  they 
did  minister."  Witness  those  holy  men  of  God  as  they 
"inquired  and  searched  diligently"  concerning  revelations 
given  them  for  generations  that  were  yet  unborn.  Contrast 
their  holy  zeal  with  the  listless  unconcern  with  which  the 
favored  ones  of  later  ages  treat  this  gift  of  Heaven.  What 
a  rebuke  to  the  ease-loving,  world-loving  indifference  whi<-li 
is  content  to  declare  that  the  prophecies  cannot  be  under- 
stood. 

Though  the  finite  minds  of  men  are  inadequate  to  rntcr 
into  the  counsels  of  the  Infinite  One,  or  to  fully  understand 
the  working  out  of  his  purposes,  yet  often  it  is  because  of 

Mob.  11  :7;  Isa.  55  : 8,  9;  46  : 9,  10.  8 1  Pet.  1  : 10-12. 


Engraved  Expressly  for  Great  Controversy!  Copyrighted  1891, 

THE  DISAPPOINTMENT  OF  THE  DISCIPLES. 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


LIGHT  TJTROran  DARKXER8.  345 


some  error  or  neglect  on  their  own  part,  that  they  so  dimly 
comprehend  the  messages  of  Heaven.  Not  infrequently  the 
minds  of  the  people — and.  even  of  God's  servants — are 
blinded  by  human  opinions,  the  traditions  and  false  teach- 
ing of  men,  so  that  they  are  able  only  partially  to  grasp  the 
great  things  which  he  has  revealed  in  his  Word.  Thus  it 
was  with  the  disciples  of  Christ,  even  when  the  Saviour  was 
with  them  in  person.  Their  minds  had  become  imbued 
with  the  popular  conception  of  the  Messiah  as  a  temporal 
prince,  who  was  to  exalt  Israel  to  the  throne  of  universal 
empire,  and  they  could  not  understand  the  meaning  of  his 
words  foretelling  his  sufferings  and  death. 

Christ  himself  had  sent  them  forth  with  the  message, 
"The  time  is  fulfilled,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand; 
repent  ye,  and  believe  the  gospel."1  That  message  was  based 
on  the  prophecy  of  Daniel  9.  The  sixty-nine  weeks  were 
declared  by  the  angel  to  extend  to  "the  Messiah  the  Prince," 
and  with  high  hopes  and  joyful  anticipations  the  disciples 
looked  forward  to  the  establishment  of  Messiah's  kingdom 
at  Jerusalem,  to  rule  over  the  whole  earth. 

They  preached  the  message  which  Christ  had  committed 
to  them,  though  they  themselves  misapprehended  its  mean- 
ing. While  their  announcement  was  founded  on  Dan.  9 : 25, 
they  did  not  see,  in  the  next  verse  of  the  same  chapter,  that 
Messiah  was  to  be  cut  off.  From  their  very  birth  their 
hearts  had  been  set  upon  the  anticipated  glory  of  an  earthly 
empire,  and  this  blinded  their  understanding  alike  to  the 
specifications  of  the  prophecy  and  to  the  words  of  Christ. 

They  performed  their  duty  in  presenting  to  the  Jewish 
nation  the  invitation  of  mercy,  and  then,  at  the  very  time 
when  they  expected  to  see  their  Lord  ascend  the  throne  of 
David,  they  beheld  him  seized  as  a  malefactor,  scourged, 
derided,  and  condemned,  and  lifted  up  on  the  cross  of  Cal- 
vary. What  despair  and  anguish  wrung  the  hearts  of  those 
disciples  during  the  days  while  their  Lord  was  sleeping  in 
the  tomb! 

lMark  1  : 15. 


346  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Christ  had  come  at  the  exact  time  and  in  the  manner 
foretold  by  prophecy.  The  testimony  of  Scripture  had  been 
fulfilled  in  every  detail  of  his  ministry.  He  had  preached 
the  message  of  salvation,  and  "  his  word  was  with  power." 
The  hearts  of  his  hearers  had  witnessed  that  it  was  of 
Heaven.  The  Word  and  the  Spirit  of  God  attested  the 
divine  commission  of  his  Son. 

The  disciples  still  clung  with  undying  affection  to  their 
beloved  Master.  And  yet  their  minds  were  shrouded  in 
uncertainty  and  doubt.  In  their  anguish  they  did  not  then 
recall  the  words  of  Christ  pointing  forward  to  his  suffering 
and  death.  If  Jesus  of  Nazareth  had  been  the  true  Messiah, 
would  they  have  been  thus  plunged  in  grief  and  disappoint- 
ment? This  was  the  question  that  tortured  their  souls, 
while  the  Saviour  lay  in  his  sepulcher  during  the  hopeless 
hours  of  that  Sabbath  which  intervened  between  his  death 
and  his  resurrection. 

Though  the  night  of  sorrow  gathered  dark  about  these 
followers  of  Jesus,  yet  were  they  not  forsaken.  Saith  the 
prophet:  "When  I  sit  in  darkness,  the  Lord  shall  be  a  light 
unto  me.  .  .  .  He  will  bring  me  forth  to  the  light,  and 
I  shall  behold  his  righteousness."  "  Yea,  the  darkness  hideth 
not  from  thee;  but  the  night  shineth  as  the  day;  the  dark- 
ness and  the  light  are  both  alike  to  thee."  God  hath  spoken: 
"  Unto  the  upright  there  ariseth  light  in  the  darkness."  "  I 
will  bring  the  blind  by  a  way  that  they  knew  not;  I  will 
lead  them  in  paths  that  they  have  not  known.  I  will  make 
darkness  light  before  them,  and  crooked  things  straight. 
These  things  will  I  do  unto  them,  and  not  forsake  them."1 

The  announcement  which  had  been  made  by  the  disciples 
in  the  name  of  the  Lord  was  in  every  particular  correct, 
and  the  events  to  which  it  pointed  were  even  then  taking 
place.  "The  time  is  fulfilled,  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at 
hand,"  had  been  their  message.  At  the  expiration  of  "  the 
time" — the  sixty-nine  weeks  of  Daniel  9,  which  were  to  ex- 

1Micah7:8,  9;  Ps.  139:12;  112:4;  Isa.  42:16. 


LIGHT  THROUGH  DARKNESS.  347 


tend  to  the  Messiah,  "the  Anointed  One" — Christ  had  re- 
ceived the  anointing  of  the  Spirit,  after  his  baptism  by  John 
in  Jordan.  And  the  "kingdom  of  God"  which  they  had 
declared  to  be  at  hand,  was  established  by  the  death  of 
Christ.  This  kingdom  was  not,  as  they  had  been  taught  to 
believe,  an  earthly  empire.  Nor  was  it  that  future,  immor- 
tal kingdom  which  shall  be  set  up  when  "the  kingdom  and 
dominion,  and  the  greatness  of  the  kingdom  under  the 
whole  heaven,  shall  be  given  to  the  people  of  the  saints  of 
the  Most  High;"  that  everlasting  kingdom,  in  which  "all 
dominions  shall  serve  and  obey  him."1  As  used  in  the 
Bible,  the  expression  "  kingdom  of  God  "  is  employed  to  des- 
ignate both  the  kingdom  of  grace  and  the  kingdom  of  glory. 
The  kingdom  of  grace  is  brought  to  view  by  Paul  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews.  After  pointing  to  Christ,  the  com- 
passionate intercessor  who  is  "touched  with  the  feeling  of  our 
infirmities,"  the  apostle  says,  "  Let  us  therefore  come  boldly 
unto  the  throne  of  grace,  that  we  may  obtain  mercy,  and  find 
grace." a  The  throne  of  grace  represents  the  kingdom  of  grace; 
for  the  existence  of  a  throne  implies  the  existence  of  a  king- 
dom. In  many  of  his  parables,  Christ  uses  the  expression, 
"the  kingdom  of  Heaven,"  to  designate  the  work  of  divine 
grace  upon  the  hearts  of  men. 

So  the  throne  of  glory  represents  the  kingdom  of  glory, 
and  this  kingdom  is  referred  tc  in  the  Saviour's  words, 
"  When  the  Son  of  man  shall  come  in  his  glory,  and  all  the 
holy  angels  with  him,  then  shall  he  sit  upon  the  throne  of 
his  glory;  and  before  him  shall  be  gathered  all  nations."* 
This  kingdom  is  yet  future.  It  is  not  to  be  set  up  until  the 
second  advent  of  Christ. 

The  kingdom  of  grace  was  instituted  immediately  after 
the  fall  of  man,  when  a  plan  was  devised  for  the  redemption 
of  the  guilty  race.  It  then  existed  in  the  purpose  and  by 
the  promise  of  God;  and  through  faith,  men  could  become 
its  subjects.  Yet  it  was  not  actually  established  until  the 

1  Dan.  7  : 27.  2  Heb.  4:16.  8  Matt.  25  : 31,  32. 


348  TUK   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


death  of  Christ.  Even  after  entering  upon  his-earthly  mis- 
sion, the  Saviour,  wearied  with  the  stubbornness  and  ingrat- 
itude of  men,  might  have  drawn  back  from  the  sacrifice  of 
Calvary.  In  Gethsemane  the  cup  of  woe  trembled  in  his 
hand.  He  might  even  then  have  wiped  the  blood-sweat  from 
his  brow,  and  have  left  the  guilty  race  to  perish  in  their 
iniquity.  Had  he  done  this,  there  could  have  been  no 
redemption  for  fallen  men.  But  when  the  Saviour  yielded 
up  his  life,  and  with  his  expiring  breath  cried  out,  "  It  is 
finished,"  then  the  fulfillment  of  the  plan  of  redemption  was 
assured.  The  promise  of  salvation  made  to  the  sinful  pair 
in  Eden  was  ratified.  The  kingdom  of  grace,  which  had 
before  existed  by  the  promise  of  God,  was  then  established. 

Thus  the  death  of  Christ — the  very  event  which  the  dis- 
ciples had  looked  upon  as  the  final  destruction  of  their  hope 
— was  that  which  made  it  forever  sure.  While  it  had 
brought  them  a  cruel  disappointment,  it  was  the  climax  of 
proof  that  their  belief  had  been  correct.  The  event  that 
had  filled  them  with  mourning  and  despair,  was  that  which 
opened  the  door  of  hope  to  every  child  of  Adam,  and  in 
which  centered  the  future  life  and  eternal  happiness  of  all 
God's  faithful  ones  in  all  the  ages. 

Purposes  of  infinite  mercy  were  reaching  their  fulfill- 
ment, even  through  the  disappointment  of  the  disciples. 
While  their  hearts  had  been  won  by  the  divine  grace  and 
power  of  His  teaching,  who  "  spake  as  never  man  spake,"  yet 
intermingled  with  the  pure  gold  of  their  love  for  Jesus,  was 
the  base  alloy  of  worldly  pride  and  selfish  ambitions.  Even 
in  the  passover  chamber,  at  that  solemn  hour  when  their 
Master  was  already  entering  the  shadow  of  Gethsemane, 
there  was  "a  strife  among  them,  which  of  them  should  be 
accounted  the  greatest."1  Their  vision  was  filled  with  the 
throne,  the  crown,  and  the  glory,  while  just  before  them  lay 
the  shame  and  agony  of  the  garden,  the  judgment-hall,  the 
cross  of  Calvary.  It  was  their  pride  of  heart,  their  thirst  for 
worldly  glory,  that  had  led  them  to  cling  so  tenaciously  to 

'Luke  22:24. 


LIGHT  THE 0  UGH  DARKNESS.  349 


the  false  teaching  of  their  time,  and  to  pass  unheeded  the 
Saviour's  words  showing  the  true  nature  of  his  kingdom, 
and  pointing  forward  to  his  agony  and  death.  And  these 
errors  resulted  in  the  trial — sharp  but  needful — which  was 
permitted  for  their  correction.  Though  the  disciples  had 
mistaken,  the  meaning  of  their  message,  and  had  failed  to 
realize  their  expectations,  yet  they  had  preached  the  warning 
given  them  of  God,  and  the  Lord  would  reward  their  faith, 
and  honor  their  obedience.  To  them  was  to  be  intrusted 
the  work  of  heralding  to  all  nations  the  glorious  gospel  of 
their  risen  Lord.  It  was  to  prepare  them  for  this  work, 
that  the  experience  which  seemed  to  them  so  bitter  had 
been  permitted. 

After  his  resurrection,  Jesus  appeared  to  his  disciples  on 
the  way  to  Emmaus,  and  "beginning  at  Moses  and  all  the 
prophets*he  expounded  unto  them  in  all  the  Scriptures  the 
things  concerning  himself."1  The  hearts  of  the  disciples 
were  stirred.  Faith  was  kindled.  They  were  "begotten 
again  unto  a  lively  hope,"  even  before  Jesus  revealed  him- 
self to  them.  It  was  his  purpose  to  enlighten  their  under- 
standing, and  to  fasten  their  faith  upon  the  "sure  word  of 
prophecy."  He  wished  the  truth  to  take  firm  root  in  their 
minds,  not  merely  because  it  was  supported  by  his  personal 
testimony,  but  because  of  the  unquestionable  evidence  pre- 
sented by  the  symbols  and  shadows  of  the  typical  law,  and 
by  the  prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament.  It  was  needful  for 
the  followers  of  Christ  to  have  an  intelligent  faith,  not  only 
in  their  own  behalf,  but  that  they  might  carry  the  knowledge 
of  Christ  to  the  world.  And  as  the  very  first  step  in  impart- 
ing this  knowledge,  Jesus  directed  the  disciples  to  "Moses 
and  the  prophets."  Such  was  the  testimony  given  by  the 
risen  Saviour  to  the  value  and  importance  of  the  Old-Testa- 
ment Scriptures. 

What  a  change  was  wrought  in  the  hearts  of  the  disci- 
ples, as  they  looked  once  more  on  the  loved  countenance  of 
their  Master ! l  In  a  more  complete  and  perfect  sense  than 

1  Luke  24: 27. 


350  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ever  before,  they  had  "found  him,  of  whom  Moses  in  the 
law,  and  the  prophets,  did  write."  The  uncertainty,  the 
anguish,  the  despair,  gave  place  to  perfect  assurance,  to 
unclouded  faith.  What  marvel  that  after  his  ascension 
they  "were  continually  in  the  temple,  praising  and  bless- 
ing God."  The  people,  knowing  only  of  the  Saviour's  igno- 
minious death,  looked  to  see  in  their  faces  the  expression 
of  sorrow,  confusion,  and  defeat ;  but  they  saw  there  gladness 
and  triumph.  What  a  preparation  these  disciples  had 
received  for  the  work  before  them !  They  had  passed  through 
the  deepest  trial  which  it  was  possible  for  them  to  experience, 
and  had  seen  how,  when  to  human  vision  all  was  lost,  the 
word  of  God  had  been  triumphantly  accomplished.  Hence- 
forward what  could  daunt  their  faith,  or  chill  the  ardor  of 
their  love?  In  the  keenest  sorrow  they  had  "strong  consola- 
tion," a  hope  which  was  as  "  an  anchor  of  the  soul?  both  sure 
and  steadfast." l  They  had  been  witness  to  the  wisdom  and 
power  of  God,  and  they  were  "persuaded,  that  neither  death, 
nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  nor  things 
present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  any 
other  creature "  would  be  able  to  separate  them  from  "  the 
love  of  God,  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord."  "  In  all 
these  things,"  they  said,  "  we  are  more  than  conquerors 
through  Him  that  loved  us."2  "The  Word  of  the  Lord 
endureth  forever."3  And  "who  is  he  that  condemneth?  It 
is  Christ  that  died,  yea  rather,  that  is  risen  again,  who  is  even 
at  the  right  hand  of  God,  who  also  maketh  intercession 
for  us."* 

Saith  the  Lord:  "My  people  shall  never  be  ashamed."9 
"Weeping  may  endure  for  a  night,  but  joy  cometh  in  the 
morning."'  When  on  his  resurrection  day  these  disciples 
met  the  Saviour,  and  their  hearts  burned  within  them  as  they 
listened  to  his  words;  when  they  looked  upon  the  IK-MI! 
and  hands  and  feet  that  had  been  bruised  for  them  ;  when, 
before  his  ascension,  Jesus  led  them  out  as  far  as  Bethany, 

i  Heb.  6  : 1 8,  19.  2  Rom.  8  : 38,  39,  ,37.  3 1  Pet.  1  : 25. 

4  Rom.  8  :  34.  *  Joel  2  :  i>6.  «  Pa.   30  : 5. 


LIGHT  THR  0  UGH  DA  RKXESS.  "351 


and,  lifting  up  his  hands  in  Messing  bade  them,  "Go  ye  into 
all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel/'  adding,  "Lo,  I  am 
with  you  alway;"1  when  on  (he  day  of  Pentecost  the  prom- 
ised Comforter  descended,  and  the  power  from  on  high  was 
given,  and  the  souls  of  the  believers  thrilled  with  the  con- 
scious presence  of  their  ascended  Lord,  — then,  even  though, 
like  his,  their  pathway  led  through  sacrifice  and  martyrdom, 
would  they  have  exchanged  the  ministry  of  the  gospel  of 
his  grace,  with  the  "  crown  of  righteousness  "  to  be  received 
at  his  coming,  for  the  glory  of  an  earthly  throne,'  which 
had  been  the  hope  of  their  earlier  discipleship  ?  He  who  is 
"  able  to  do  exceeding  abundantly  above  all  that  we  ask  or 
think,"  had  granted  them,  with  the  fellowship  of  His  suffer- 
ings, the  communion  of  his  joy, — the  joy  of  "  bringing  many 
sons  unto  glory,"  joy  unspeakable,  "an  eternal  weight  of 
glory,"  to  which,  says  Paul,  "our  light  affliction,  which  is 
but  for  a  moment,"  is  "not  worthy  to  be  compared." 

The  experience  of  the  disciples  who  preached  the  "gospel 
of  the  kingdom"  at  the  first  advent  of  Christ,  has  its  coun- 
terpart in  the  experience  of  those  who  proclaimed  the  mes- 
sage of  his  second  advent.  As  the  disciples  went  out  preach- 
ing, "  The  time  is  fulfilled,  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand," 
so  Miller  and  his  associates  proclaimed  that  the  longest  and 
last  prophetic  period  brought  to  view  in  the  Bible  was  about 
to  expire,  that  the  Judgment  was  at  hand,  and  the  everlast- 
ing kingdom  was  to  be  ushered  in.  The  preaching  of  the 
disciples  in  regard  to  time  was  based  on  the  seventy  weeks 
of  Daniel  9.  The  message  given  by  Miller  and  his  associates 
announced  the  termination  of  the  2300  days  of  Dan.  8 : 14, 
of  which  the  seventy  weeks  form  a  part.  The  preaching  of 
each  was  based  upon  the  fulfillment  of  a  different  portion  of 
the  same  great  prophetic  period. 

Like  the  first  disciples,  William  Miller  and  his  associates 
did  not,  themselves,  fully  comprehend  the  import  of  the 
message  which  they  bore.  Errors  that  had  been  long  estab- 
lished in  the  church  prevented  them  from  arriving  at  a  cor- 

i  Mark  16: 15;  Matt.  28:20. 


352  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

rcct  interpretation  of  an  important  point  in  the  prophecy. 
Therefore,  though  they  proclaimed  the  message  which  God 
had  committed  to  them  to  be  given  to  the  world,  yet  through 
a  misapprehension  of  its  meaning,  they  suffered  disappoint- 
ment. 

In  explaining  Dan.  8 : 14,  "  Unto  two  thousand  and  three 
hundred  days,  then  shall  the  sanctuary  be  cleansed,"  Miller, 
as  has  been  stated,  adopted  the  generally  received  view  that 
the  earth  is  the  sanctuary,  and  he  believed  that  the  cleansing 
of  the 'sanctuary  represented  the  purification  of  the  earth  by 
fire  at  the  coming  of  the  Lord.  When,  therefore,  he  found 
that  the  close  of  the  2300  days  was  definitely  foretold,  Jie 
concluded  that  this  revealed  the  time  of  the  second  advent. 
His  error  resulted  from  accepting  the  popular  view  as  to 
what  constitutes  the  sanctuary. 

In  the  typical  system, — which  was  a  shadow  of  the  sacri- 
fice and  priesthood  of  Christ, — the  cleansing  of  the  sanct- 
uary was  the  last  service  performed  by  the  high  priest  in  the 
yearly  round  of  ministration.  It  was  the  closing  work  of 
the  atonement,— a  removal  or  putting  away  of  sin  from 
Israel.  It  prefigured  the  closing  work  in  the  ministration 
of  our  High  Priest  in  Heaven,  in  the  removal  or  blotting 
out  of  the  sins  of  his  people,  which  are  registered  in  the 
heavenly  records.  This  service  involves  a  work  of  investi- 
gation, a  work  of  judgment;  and  it  immediately  precedes 
the  coming  of  Christ  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  with  power 
and  great  glory;  for  when  he  comes,  every  case  has  born 
decided.  Says  Jesus,  "My  reward  is  with  me,  to  give  every 
man  according  as  his  work  shall  be."1  It  is  this  work  of 
judgment,  immediately  preceding  the  second  advent,  that  is 
announced  in  the  first  angel's  message  of  Rev.  It :  7:  ''  Fear 
God,  and  give  glory  to  him ;  for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment 
is  come." 

Those  who  proclaimed  this  warning  gave  the  right  mes- 
sage at  the  right  time.  But  as  the  early  disciples  declared, 
"  The  time  is  fulfilled,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand," 

i  Rev.  22  : 12 


LIGHT  TIIR  o  m;ir  DA  RKNESS.  353 


based  on  the  prophecy  of  Daniel  9,  while  they  failed  to  per- 
ceive that  the  death  of  the  Messiah  was  foretold  in  the  same 
scripture,  so  Miller  and  his  associates  preached  the  message 
based  on  Dan.  8:14  and  Rev.  14:7,  and  failed  to  see  that 
there  were  still  other  messages  brought  to  view  in  Revela- 
tion 14,  which  were  also  to  be  given  before  the  advent  of  the 
Lord.  As  the  disciples  were  mistaken  in  regard  to  the  king- 
dom to  be  set  up  at  the  end  of  the  seventy  weeks,  so  Advent- 
ists  were  mistaken  in  regard  to  the  event  to  take  place  at 
the  expiration  of  the  2300  days.  In  both  cases  there  was.  an 
acceptance  of,  or  rather  an  adherence  to,  popular  errors  that 
blinded  the  mind  to  the  truth.  Both  classes  fulfilled  the 
will  of  God  in  delivering  the  message  which  he  desired  to 
be  given,  and  both,  through  their  own  misapprehension  of 
their  message,  suffered  disappointment. 

Yet  God  accomplished  his  own  beneficent  purpose  in  per- 
mitting the  warning  of  the  Judgment  to  be  given  just  as  it 
was.  The  great  day  was  at  hand,  and  in  his  providence  the 
people  were  brought  to  the  test  of  a  definite  time,  in  order 
to  reveal  to  them  what  was  in  their  hearts.  The  message 
was  designed  for  the  testing  and  purification  of  the  church. 
They  were  to  be  led  to  see  whether  their  affections  were  set 
upon  this  world  or  upon  Christ  and  Heaven.  They  pro- 
fessed to  love  the  Saviour;  now  they  were  to  prove  their 
love.  Were  they  ready  to  renounce  their  worldly  hopes 
and  ambitions,  and  welcome  with  joy  the  advent  of  their 
Lord  ?  The  message  was  designed  to  enable  them  to  discern 
their  true  spiritual  state;  it  was  sent  in  mercy  to  arouse 
them  to  seek  the  Lord  with  repentance*  and  humiliation. 

The  disappointment  also,  though  the  result  of  their  own 
misapprehension  of  the  message  which  they  gave,  was  to  be 
overruled  for  good.  It  would  test,  the  hearts  of  those  who 
had  professed  to  receive  the  warning.  In  the  face  of  their 
disappointment,  would  they  rashly  give  up  their  experience, 
and  cast  away  their  confidence  in  God's  Word?  or  would  they, 
in  prayer  and  humility,  seek  to  discern  where  they  had 


354  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


failed  to  comprehend  the  significance  of  the  prophecy  ?  How 
many  had  moved  from  fear,  or  from  impulse  and  excite- 
ment? How  many  were  half-hearted  and  unbelieving? 
Multitudes  professed  to  love  the  appearing  of  the  Lord. 
When  called  to  endure  the  scoffs  and  reproach  of  the  world, 
and  the  test  of  delay  and  disappointment,  would  they 
renounce  the  faith?  Because  they  did  not  immediately 
understand  the  dealings  of  God  with  them,  would  they  cast 
aside  truths  sustained  by  the  clearest  testimony  of  his  Word? 

This  test  would  reveal  the  strength  of  those  who  with  real 
faith  had  obeyed  what  they  believed  to  be  the  teaching  of 
the  Word  and  the  Spirit  of  God.  It  would  teach  them,  as 
only  such  an  experience  could,  the  danger  of  accepting  the 
theories  and  interpretations  of  men,  instead  of  making  the 
Bible  its  own  interpreter  To  the  children  of  faith  the  per- 
plexity and  sorrow  resulting  from  their  error,  would  work 
the  needed  correction.  They  would  be  led  to  a  closer  study 
of  the  prophetic  word.  They  would  be  taught  to  examine 
more  carefully  the  foundation  of  their  faith,  and  to  reject 
everything,  however  widely  accepted  by  the  Christian  world, 
that  was  not  founded  upon  the  Scriptures  of  truth. 

With  these  believers,  as  with  the  first  disciples,  that  which 
in  the  hour  of  trial  seemed  dark  to  their  understanding, 
would  afterward  be  made  plain.  When  they  should  see  the 
"end  of  the  Lord,"  they  would  know  that  notwithstanding 
the  trial  resulting  from  their  errors,  his  purposes  of  love 
toward  them  had  been  steadily  fulfilling.  They  would  learn 
by  a  blessed  experience  that  he  is  "very  pitiful,  and  of  ten- 
der mercy ;*  that  all  his  paths  "are  mercy  and  truth  unto 
such  as  keep  his  covenant  and  his  testimonies." 


CHAPTER    XX. 


A  GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING. 

A  GREAT  religious  awakening  under  the  proclamation  of 
Christ's  soon  coming,  is  foretold  in  the  prophecy  of  the  first 
angel's  message  of  Revelation  14.  An  angel  is  seen  flying 
"in  the  midst  of  heaven,  having  the  everlasting  gospel  to 
preach  unto  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  and  to  every 
nation,  and  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people."  "  With  a  loud 
voice"  he  proclaims  the  message, "  Fear  God,  and  give  glory 
to  him ;  for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment  is  come :  and  worship 
him  that  made  heaven,  and  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the 
fountains  of  waters."1 

The  fact  that  an  angel  is  said  to  be  the  herald  of  this  warn- 
ing, is  significant.  By  the  purity,  the  glory,  and  the  power 
of  the  heavenly  messenger,  divine  wisdom  has  been  pleased 
to  represent  the  exalted  character  of  the  work  to  be  accom- 
plished by  the  message,  and  the  power  and  glory  that  were 
to  attend  it.  And  the  angel's  flight "  in,  the  midst  of  heaven," 
the  "  loud  voice "  with  which  the  warning  is  uttered,  and 
its  promulgation  to  all  "that  dwell  on  the  earth," — "to 
every  nation,  and  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people," — give 
evidence  of  the  rapidity  and  world- wide  extent  of  the  move- 
ment. 

The  message  itself  sheds  light  as  to  the  time  when  this 
movement  is  to  take  place.  It  is  declared  to  be  a  part  of 
the  " everlasting  gospel ;"  and  it  announces  the  opening  of 
the  Judgment.  The  message  of  salvation  has  been  preached 
in  all  ages;  but  this  message  is  a  part  of  the  gospel  which 
could  be  proclaimed  only  in  the  last  days,  for  only  then 

1  Bev.  14  1 6,  7. 


356  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


would  it  be  true  that  the  hour  of  Judgment  had  come.  The 
prophecies  present  a  succession  of  events  leading  down  to 
the  opening  of  the  Judgment.  This  is  especially  true  of  the 
book  of  Daniel.  But  that  part  of  his  prophecy  which  re- 
lated to  the  last  days,  Daniel  was  bidden  to  close  up  and 
seal  "to  the  time  of  the  end."  Not  till  we  reach  this  time 
could  a  message  concerning  the  Judgment  be  proclaimed, 
based  on  a  fulfillment  of  these  prophecies.  But  at  the  time 
of  the  end,  says  the  prophet,  "  many  shall  run  to  and  fro, 
and  knowledge  shall  be  increased."1 

The  apostle  Paul  warned  the  church  not  to  look  for  the 
coming  of  Christ  in  his  day.  "That  day  shall  not  come," 
he  says,  "  except  there  come  a  falling  away  first,  and  that 
man  of  sin  be  revealed."2  Not  till  after  the  great  apostasy, 
and  the  long  period  of  the  reign  of  the  "  man  of  sin,"  can  we 
look  for  the  advent  of  our  Lord.  The  "man  of  sin,"  which  is 
also  styled  the  "mystery  of  iniquity,"  the  "son  of  perdition," 
and  "that  wicked,"  represents  the  papacy,  which,  as  foretold 
in  prophecy,  was  to  maintain  its  supremacy  for  1200  years. 
This  period  ended  in  1798.  The  coming  of  Christ  could 
not  take  place  before  that  time.  Paul  covers  with  his  cau- 
tion the  whole  of  the  Christian  dispensation  down  to  the 
year  1798.  It  is  this  side  of  that  time  that  the  message  of 
Christ's  second  coming  is  to  be  proclaimed. 

No  such  message  has  ever  been  given  in  past  ages.  Paul, 
as  we  have  seen,  did  not  preach  it;  he  pointed  his  brethren 
into  the  then  far-distant  future  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord. 
The  reformers  did  not  proclaim  it.  Martin  Luther  placed 
the  Judgment  about  three  hundred  years  in  the  future  from 
his  day.  But  since  1798  the  book  of  Daniel  has  been  un- 
sealed, knowledge  of  the  prophecies  has  increased,  and 
many  have  proclaimed  the  solemn  message  of  the  Judgment 
near. 

Like  the  great  Reformation  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the 
Advent  movement  appeared  in  different  countries  of  Chris- 

12:4  82  Thess.  2:3. 


A  ORE  A  T  RELIGIO  US  A  WAKENING.  357 


tendom  at  the  same  time.  In  both  Europe  and  America, 
men  of  faith  and  prayer  were  led  to  the  study  of  the  proph- 
ecies, and,  tracing  down  the  inspired  record,  th'ey  saw  con- 
vincing evidence  that  the  end  of  all  things  was  at  hand. 
In  different  lands  there  were  isolated  bodies  of  Christians, 
who,  solely  by  the  study  of  the  Scriptures,  arrived  at  the 
belief  that  the  Saviour's  advent  was  near. 

In  1821,  three  years  after  Miller  had  arrived  at  his  exposi- 
tion of  the  prophecies  pointing  to  the  time  of  the  Judgment, 
Dr.  Joseph  Wolff,  "the  missionary  to  the  world,"  began 
to  proclaim  the  Lord's  soon  coming.  Wolff  was  born  in 
Germany,  of  Hebrew  parentage,  his  father  being  a  Jewish 
Rabbi.  While  very  young  he  was  convinced  of  the  truth 
of  the  Christian  religion.  Of  an  active,  inquiring  mind,  he 
had  been  an  eager  listener  to  the  conversations  that  took 
place -in  his  father's  house,  as  devout  Hebrews  daily  assem- 
bled to  recount  the  hopes  and  anticipations  of  their  people, 
the  glory  of  the  coming  Messi'ih,  and  the  restoration  of 
Israel.  One  day  hearing  Jesus  of  Nazareth  mentioned,  the 
boy  inquired  who  he  was.  "A  man  of  the  greatest  talent/'" 
was  the  answer;  "but  because  he  pretended  to  be  the  Mes- 
siah, the  Jewish  tribunal  sentenced  him  to  death."  "  Why, 
then,"  rejoined  the  questioner,  "  why  is  Jerusalem  destroyed  ? 
and  why  are  we  in  captivity  ?  "  "Alas,  alas ! "  answered  his 
father,  "because  the  Jews  murdered  the  prophets."  The 
thought  was  at  once  suggested  to  the  child,  "  Perhaps  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  was  also  a  prophet,  and  the  Jews  killed  him 
when  he  was  innocent."  So  strong  was  this  feeling,  that 
though  forbidden  to  enter  a  Christian  church,  he  would 
often  linger  outside  to  listen  to  the  preaching. 

When  only  seven  years  old,  he  wras  boasting  to  an  aged 
Christian  neighbor  of  the  future  triumpli  of  Israel  at  the 
advent  of  the  Messiah,  when  the  old  man  said  kindly,  "Dear 
boy,  I  will  tell  you  who  the  real  Messiah  was:  he  was  Jesus 
of  Nazareth,  whom  your  ancestors  crucified,  as  they  slew 
the  prophets  of  old.  Go  home  and  read  the  fifty-third 
27 


358  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


chapter  of  Isaiah,  and  you  will  be  convinced  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  Son  of  God."  Conviction  at  once  fastened  upon 
him.  He  went  home  and  read  the  scripture,  wondering  to 
see  how  perfectly  it  had  been  fulfilled  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 
Were  the  words  of  the  Christian  true?  The  boy  asked  of 
his  father  an  explanation  of  the  prophecy,  but  was  met  with 
a  silence  so  stern  that  he  never  again  dared  to  refer  to  the 
subject.  This  however  only  increased  his  desire  to  know 
more  of  the  Christian  religion. 

The  knowledge  he  sought  was  studiously  kept  from  him 
in  his  Jewish  home;  but  when  only  eleven  years  old,  he  left 
his  father's  house,  and  went  out  into  the  wrorld  to  gain  for 
himself  an  education,  to  choose  his  religion  and  his  life-work. 
He  found  a  home  for  a  time  with  kinsmen,  but  was  soon 
driven  from  them  as  an  apostate,  and  alone  and  penniless 
he  had  to  make  his  own  way  among  strangers.  He  went 
from  place  to  place,  studying  diligently,  and  maintaining 
himself  by  teaching  Hebrew.  Through  the  influence  of  a 
Catholic  instructor,  he  was  led  to  accept  the  Komish  faith, 
and  formed  the  purpose  of  becoming  a  missionary  to  his 
own  people.  With  this  object  he  went,  a  few  years  later,  to 
pursue  his  studies  in  the  College  of  the  Propaganda  at  Rome. 
Here  his  habit  of  independent  thought  and  candid  speech 
brought  upon  him  the  imputation  of  heresy.  He  openly 
attacked  the  abuses  of  the  church,  and  urged  the  necessity 
of  reform.  Though  at  first  treated  with  special  favor  by  the 
papal  dignitaries,  he  was  after  a  time  removed  from  Rome. 
Under  the  surveillance  of  the  church  he  went  from  place 
to  place,  until  it  became  evident  that  he  could  never  be 
brought  to  submit  to  the  bondage  of  Romanism.  He  was 
declared  to  be  incorrigible,  and  was  left  at  liberty  to  go  where 
he  pleased.  He  now  made  his  way  to  England,  and,  pro- 
fessing the  Protestant  faith,  united  with  the  English  ( 1lmivh. 
After  two  years'  study  he  set  out,  in  1821,  upon  his  mission. 

While  Wolff  accepted  the  great  truth  of  Christ's  first 
advent  as  "a  man  of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with  grief,"  he 


A  ORE  A  T  REL1GIO  US  A  WAKENING.  359 

saw  that  the  prophecies  bring  to  view  with  equal  clearness 
his  second  advent  with  power  and  glory.  And  while  he 
sought  to  lead  his  people  to  Jesus  of  Nazareth  as  the  Prom- 
ised One,  and  to  point  them  to  his  first  coming  in  humiliation 
as  a  sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  men,  he  taught  them  also  of  his 
second  coming  as  a  king  and  deliverer. 

"Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  true  Messiah,"  he  said,  "whose 
hands  and  feet  were  pierced,  who  was  brought  like  a  lamb 
to  the  slaughter,  who  was  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acquainted 
with  grief,  who  after  the  scepter  was  taken  from  Judah,  and 
the  legislative  power  from  between  his  feet,  came  the  first 
time,  shall  come  the  second  time  in  the  clouds  of  heaven, 
and  with  the  trump  of  the  archangel,"  and  "shall  stand 
upon  the  Mount  of  Olives.  And  that  dominion  once  con- 
signed to  Adam  over  the  creation  and  forfeited  by  him  (Gen. 
1 : 26 ;  3 : 17)  shall  be  given  to  Jesus.  He  shall  be  king  over  all 
the  earth.  The  groanings  and  lamentations  of  the  creation 
shall  cease,  but  songs  of  praise  and  thanksgiving  shall  be 
heard."  "When  Jesus  comes  in  the  glory  of  his  Father 
with  the  holy  angels,"  "the  dead  believers  shall  rise  first. 
1  Thess.  4 : 16 ;  1  Cor.  15 : 23.  This  is  what  we  Christians  call 
the  first  resurrection.  Then  the  animal  kingdom  shall 
change  its  nature  (Isa.  11 : 6-9),  and  shall  be  subdued  unto 
Jesus.  Ps.  8.  Universal  peace  shall  prevail."  "The  Lord 
again  shall  look  down  upon  the  earth,  and  say, '  Behold,  it  is 
very  good.' " 

Wolff  believed  the  coming  of  the  Lord  to  be  at  hand, 
his  interpretation  of  the  prophetic  periods 'placing  the  great 
consummation  within  a  very  few  years  of  the  time  pointed 
out  by  Miller.  To  those  who  urged  from  the  scripture,  "  Of 
that  day  and  hour  knoweth  no  man,"  that  men  are  to  know 
nothing  concerning  the  nearness  of  the  advent,  Wolff 
replied:  "Did  our 'Lord  say  that  the  day  and  hour  should 
never  be  known?  Did  he  not  give  us  signs  of  the  times,  in 
order  that  we  may  know  at  least  the  approach  of  his  coming, 
as  one  knows  the  approach  of  summer  by  the  fig-tree  put- 


360  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ting  forth  its  leaves?  Are  we  never  to  know  that  period, 
whilst  he  himself  exhorteth  not  only  to  read  Daniel  the 
prophet  but  to  understand  him?  And  in  that  very  Daniel 
where  it  is  said  that  the  words  were  shut  up  to  the  time  of 
the  end  (which  was  the  case  in  his  time),  and  that  'many 
shall  run  to  and  fro '  (a  Hebrew  expression  for  observing  and 
thinking  upon  the  time),  and  'knowledge'  (regarding  that 
time) 'shall  be  increased.'  Besides  this,  our  Lord  does  not 
intend  to  say  by  this,  that  the  approach  of  the  time  shall  not 
be  known,  but  that  the  exact  l  day  and  hour  knoweth  no 
man.'  He  does  say  that  enough  shall  be  known  by  the  signs 
of  the  times,  to  induce  us  to  prepare  for  his  coming,  as 
Noah  prepared  the  ark." 

Concerning  the  popular  system  of  interpreting,  or  misin- 
terpreting, the  Scriptures,  Wolff  wrote:  "  The  greater  part  of 
the-  Christian  church  have  swerved  from  the  plain  sense  of 
Scripture,  and  have  turned  to  the  phantoinizing  system  of 
the  Buddhists;  they  believe  that  the  future  happiness  of 
mankind  will  consist  in  moving  about  in  the  air,  and  sup- 
pose that  when  they  are  reading  Jews,  they  must  understand 
Gentiles;  and  when  they  read  Jerusalem,  they  must  under- 
stand the  church;  and  if  it  said  earth,  it  means  .s/jy;  and  for 
the  com.ing  of  the  Lord  they  must  understand  the  progress  of 
the  missionary  societies;  and  going  up  to  the  mountain  of 
the  Lord's  house,  signifies  a  grand  class-meeting  of  Methodists" 

During  the  twenty-four  years  from  1821  to  1845,  Wolff 
traveled  extensively:  in  Africa,  visiting  Egypt  and  Abys- 
sinia; in  Asia,  traversing  -Palestine,  Syria,  Persia,  Bokh a ra, 
and  India.  He  also  visited  the  United  States,  on  the  jour- 
ney thither  preaching  on  the  island  of  St.  Helena.  lie 
arrived  in  New  York  in  August,  1837;  and  after  speak  ing  in 
that  city,  he  preached  in  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore,  and 
finally  proceeded  to  Washington.  Here,  he  says,  "on  a 
motion  brought  forward  by  the  ex-President,  John  (v)niney 
Adiims,  in  one  of  the  houses  of  Congress,  the  House  unani- 
mously granted  me  the  use  of  the  Congress  1 1  all  for  a  lect- 


JOSEPH  WOLFF  AMONG  THE  ARABS. 


A    GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING.  361 


ure,  which  I  delivered  on.  a  Saturday,  honored  with  the  pres- 
ence of  all  the  members  of  Congress,  and  also  of  the  bishop 
of  Virginia,  and  the  clergy  and  citizens  of  Washington. 
The  same  honor  was  granted  to  me  by  the  members  of  the 
Government  of  New  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania,  in  whose  pres- 
ence I  delivered  lectures  on  my  researches  in  Asia,  and  also 
on  the  personal  reign  of  Jesus  Christ." 

Dr.  Wolff  traveled  in  the  most  barbarous  countries,  with- 
out the  protection  of  any  European  authority,  enduring 
many  hardships,  and  surrounded  with  countless  perils.  He 
was  bastinadoed  and  starved,  sold  as  a  slave,  and  three  times 
condemned  to  death.  He  was  beset  by  robbers,  and  some- 
times nearly  perished  from  thirst.  Once  he  was  stripped 
of  all  that  he  possessed,  and  left  to  travel  hundreds  of 
miles  on  foot  through  the  mountains,  the  snow  beating  in 
his  face,  and  his  naked  feet  benumbed  by  contact  with  the 
frozen  ground. 

When  warned  against  going  unarmed  amongst  savage 
and  hostile  tribes,  he  declared  himself  provided  with  arms, 
— "prayer,  zeal  for  Christ,  and  confidence  in  his  help."  "I 
am  also,"  he  said,  "provided  with  the  love  of  God  and  my 
neighbor  in  my  heart,  and  the  Bible  is  in  my  hand."  The 
Bible  in  Hebrew  and  English  he  carried  with  him  wherever 
he  went.  Of  one  of  his  later  journeys  he  says,  "  I  kept  the 
Bible  open  in  my  hand.  I  felt  my  power  was  in  the  book, 
and  that  its  might  would  sustain  me." 

Thus  he  persevered  in  his  labors  until  the  message  of  the 
Judgment  had  been  carried  to  a  large  part  of  the  habitable 
globe.  Among  Jews,  Turks,  Parsees,  Hindoos,  and  many 
other  nationalities  and  races,  he  distributed  the  Word  of  God 
in  these  various  tongues,  and  everywhere  heralded  the 
approaching  reign  of  the  Messiah. 

In  his  travels  in  Bokhara  he  found  the  doctrine  of  the 
Lord's  soon  coming  held  by  a  remote  and  isolated  people. 
The  Arabs  of  Yemen,  he  says,  "are  int  possession  of  a  book 
called  'Seera,'  which  gives  notice  of  the  coming  of  Christ 


362  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


and  his  reign  in  glory,  and  they  expect  great  events  to  take 
place  in  the  year  1840."  "  In  Yemen  I  spent  six  days  with 
the  Rechabites.  They  drink  no  wine,  plant  no  vineyards, 
sow  no  seed,  live  in  tents,  and  remember  the  words  of  Jona- 
dab,  the  son  of  Rechab.  With  them  were  the  children  of 
Israel  of  the  tribe  of  Dan,  .  .  .  who  expect,  in  common 
with  the  children  of  Rechab,  the  speedy  arrival  of  the  Mes- 
siah in  the  clouds  of  heaven." 

A*similar  belief  was  found  by  another  missionary  to  exist  in 
Tartary.  A  Tartar  priest  put  the  question  to  the  missionary, 
as  to  when  Christ  would  come  the  second  time.  When  the 
missionary  answered  that  he  knew  nothing  about  it,  the 
priest  seemed  greatly  surprised  at  such  ignorance  in  one  who 
professed  to  be  a  Bible  teacher,  and  stated  his  own  belief, 
founded  on  prophecy,  that  Christ  would  come  about  1844. 

As  early  as  1826  the  Advent  message  began  to  be  preached 
in  England.  The  movement  here  did .  not  take  so  definite 
a  form  as  in  America,  the  exact  time  of  the  advent  was  not 
so  generally  taught,  but  the  great  truth  of  Christ's  soon 'com- 
ing in  power  and  glory  was  extensively  proclaimed.  And 
this  not  among  dissenters  and  non-conformists  tmly.  Mou- 
rant  Brock,  an  English  writer,  states  that  about  seven  hun- 
dred ministers  of  the  Church  of  England  were  engaged  in 
preaching  this  "gospel  of  the  kingdom."  The  message 
pointing  to  1844  as  the  time  of  the  Lord's  coming  was  also 
given  in  Great  Britain.  Advent  publications  from  the 
United  States  were  widely  circulated.  Books  and  journals 
were  republished  in  England.  And  in  1842,  Robert  Winter, 
an  Englishman  by  birth,  who  had  received  the  Advent  faith 
in  America,  returned  to  his  native  country  to  herald  the 
coming  of  the  Lord.  Many  united  with  him  in  the  work, 
and  the  message  of  the  Judgment  was  proclaimed  in  various 
parts  of  England. 

In  South  America,  in  the  midst  of  barbarism  and  priest- 
craft, Lacunza,  a  Spaniard  and  a  Jesuit,  found  his  way  to 
the  Scriptures,  and  thus  received  the  truth  of  Christ's  speedy 


A  ORE  A  T  RELIGIO  US  A  WAKENING.  363 


return.  Impelled  to  give  the  warning,  yet  desiring  to  escape 
the  censures  of  Koine,  he  published  his  views  under  the 
assumed  name  of  "Rabbi  Ben-Israel,"  representing  himself 
as  a  converted  Jew.  Lacunza  lived  in  the  eighteenth  •  cent- 
ury, but  it  was  about  1825  that  his  book,  having  found  its 
way  to  London,  was  translated  into  the  English  language. 
Its  publication  served  to  deepen  the  interest  already  awaken- 
ing in  England  in  the  subject  of  the  second  advent. 

In  Germany  the  doctrine  had  been  taught  in  the  eight- 
eenth century  by  Bengel,  a  minister  in  the  Lutheran  Church, 
and  a  celebrated  Biblical  scholar  and  critic.  Upon  com- 
pleting his  education,  Bengel  had  devoted  himself  to  the 
study  of  theology,  "  to  which  the  grave  and  religious  tone 
of  his  mind,  deepened  and  strengthened  by  his  early  train- 
ing and  discipline,  naturally  inclined  him.  Like  other 
young  men  of  thoughtful  character,  before  and  since,  he 
had  to  struggle  with  doubts  and  difficulties  of  a  religious 
nature,  and  he  alludes,  with  much  feeling,  to  the  'many 
arrows  which  pierced  his  poor  heart,  and  made  his  youth 
hard  to  bear.'"  Becoming  a  member  of  the  consistory  of 
Wiirtemberg,  he  advocated  the  cause  of  religious  liberty, 
urging  "that  all  reasonable  freedom  be  accorded  those  who 
felt  themselves  bound,  on  grounds  of  conscience,  to  with- 
draw from  the  established  church."  The  good  effects  of  this 
policy  are  still  felt  in  his  native  province. 

It  was  while  preparing  a  sermon  from  Revelation  21  for 
"Advent  Sunday "  that  the  light  of  Christ's  second  coming 
broke  in  upon  Bengel's  mind.  The  prophecies  of  the  Rev-, 
elation  unfolded  to  his  understanding  as  never  before.  Over- 
whelmed with  a  sense  of  the  stupendous  importance  and 
surpassing  glory  of  the  scenes  presented  by  the  prophet,  he 
was  forced  to  turn  for  a  time  from  the  contemplation  of  the 
subject.  In  the  pulpit  it  again  presented  itself  to  him  with 
all  its  vividness  and  power.  From  that  time  he  devoted 
himself  to  the  study  of  the  prophecies,  especially  those  of  the 
Apocalypse,  and  soon  arrived  at  the  belief  that  they  pointed 


364  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


to  the  coining  of  Christ  as  near.  The  date  which  he  fixed 
upon  as  the  time  of  the  second  advent  was  within  a  very 
few  years  of  that  afterward  held  by  Miller. 

Bengel's  writings  have  been  spread  throughout  Christen- 
dom. His  views  of  prophecy  were  quite  generally  received 
in  his  own  State  of  Wurtemberg,  and  to  some  extent  in 
other  parts  of  Germany.  The  movement  continued  after  his 
death,  and  the  Advent  message  was  heard  in  Germany  at 
the  same  time  that  it  was  attracting  attention  in  other  lands. 
At  an  early  date  some  of  the  believers  went  to  Russia,  and 
there  formed  colonies,  and  the  faith  of  Christ's  soon  coming 
is  still  held  by  the  German  churches  of  that  country. 

The  light  shone  also  in  France  and  Switzerland.  At 
Geneva,  where  Farel  and  Calvin  had  spread  the  truths  of  the 
Reformation,  Gaussen.  preached  the  message  of  the  second 
advent.  While  a  student  at  school,  Gaussen  had  encountered 
that  spirit  of  rationalism  which  pervaded  all  Europe  during 
the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  and  the  opening  of  the  nine- 
teenth century;  and  when  he  entered  the  ministry  he  was 
not  only  ignorant  of  true  faith,  but  inclined  to  skepticism. 
In  his  youth  he  had  become  interested  in  the  study  of  proph- 
ecy. After  reading  "  Rollin's  Ancient  History,"  his  attention 
was  called  to  the  second  chapter  of  Daniel,  and  he  was 
struck  with  the  wonderful  exactness  with  which  the  proph- 
ecy had  been  fulfilled,  as  seen  in  the  historian's  record. 
Here  was  a  testimony  to  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures, 
which  served  as  an  anchor  to  him  amid  the  perils  of  later 
years.  He  could  not  rest  satisfied  with  the  teachings  of 
rationalism,  and  in  studying  the  Bible  and  searching  for 
clearer  light  he  was,  after  a  time,  led  to  a  positive  faith. 

As  he  pursued  his  investigation  of  the  prophecies,  he 
arrived  at  the  belief  that  the  coming  of  the  Lord  was  at 
hand.  Impressed  with  the  solemnity  and  importance  of 
this  great  truth,  he  desired  to  bring  it  before  the  people,  but 
the  popular  belief  that  the  prophecies  of  Daniel  are  mys- 
teries and  cannot  be  understood,  was  a  serious  obstacle  in 


A  GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING.  365 

his  way.  He  finally  determined — as  Farel  had  done  before 
him  in  evangelizing  Geneva — to  begin  with  the  children, 
through  whom  he  hoped  to  interest  the  parents. 

"I  desire  this  to  be  understood,"  he  afterward  said,  speak- 
ing of  his  object  in  this  undertaking,  "it  is  not  because  of 
its  small  importance,  but  on  the  contrary  because  of  its 
great  value,  that  I  wished  to  present  it  in  this  familiar  form, 
and  that  I  addressed  it  to  the  children.  I  desired  to  be 
heard,  and  I  feared  that  I  would  not  be  if  I  addressed 
myself  to  the  grown  people  first."  "I  determined  therefore 
to  go  to  the  youngest.  I  gather  an  audience  of  children;  if 
the  group  enlarges,  if  it  is  seen  that  they  listen,  are  pleased, 
interested,  that  they  understand  and  explain  the  subject,  I 
am  sure  to  have  a  second  circle  soon,  and  in  their  turn, 
grown  people  will  see  that  it  is  worth  their  while  to  sit  down 
and  study.  When  this  is  done,  the  cause  is  gained." 

The  effort' was  successful.  As  he  addressed  the  children, 
older  persons  came  to  listen.  The  galleries  of  his  church 
were  filled  with  attentive  hearers.  Among  them  were  men 
of  rank  and  learning,  and  strangers  and  foreigners  visiting 
Geneva,  and  thus  the  message  was  carried  to  other  parts. 

Encouraged  by  this  success,  Gaussen  published  his  lessons, 
with  the  hope  of  promoting  the  study  of  the  prophetic  books 
in  the  churches  of  the  French-speaking  people/  "To  pub- 
lish instruction  given  to  the  children,"  says  Gaussen,  "  is  to 
say  to  adults,  who  too  often  neglect  such  books  under 
the  false  pretense  that  they  are  obscure, '  How  can  they  be 
obscure,  since  your  children  understand  them?"  "I  had  a 
great  desire,"  he  adds,  "to  render  a  knowledge  of  the  proph- 
ecies popular  in  our  flocks,  if  possible."  "  There  is  no  study, 
indeed,  which  it  seems  to  me  answers  the  needs  of  the  time 
better."  "  It  is  by  this  that  we  are  to  prepare  for  the  tribu- 
lation near  at  hand,  and  watch  and  wait  for  Jesus  Christ." 

Though  one  of  the  most  distinguished  and  beloved  of 
preachers  in  the  French  language,  Gaussen  was  after  a  time 
suspended  from  the  ministry,  his  principal  offense  being  that 


366  ffltf   G&EAT 


instead  of  the  church's  catechism,  a  tame  and  rationalistic 
manual,  almost  destitute  of  positive  faith,  he  had  used  the 
Bible  in  giving  instruction  to  the  youth.  He  afterward 
became  teacher  in  a  theological  school,  while  on  Sunday 
he  continued  his  work  as  catechist,  addressing  the  children, 
and  instructing  them  in  the  Scriptures.  His  works  on 
prophecy  also  excited  much  interest.  From  the  professor's 
chair,  through  the  press,  and  in  his  favorite  occupation  as 
teacher  of  children,  he  continued  for  many  years  to  exert  an 
extensive  influence,  and  was  instrumental  in  calling  the 
attention  of  many  to  the  study  of  the  prophecies  which 
showed  that  the  coming  of  the  Lord  was  near. 

In  Scandinavia  also  the  Advent  message  Was  proclaimed, 
and  a  widespread  interest  was  kindled.  Many  were  roused 
from  their  careless  security,  to  confess  and  forsake  their  sins, 
and  seek  pardon  in  the  name  of  Christ.  But  the  clergy  of 
the  State  church  opposed  the  movement,  and  through  their 
influence  some  who  preached  the  message  were  thrown  into 
prison.  In  many  places  where  the  preachers  of  the  Lord's 
soon  coming  were  thus  silenced,  God  was  pleased  to  send  the 
message,  in  a  miraculous  manner,  through  little  children. 
As  they  were  under  age,  the  law  of  the  State  could  not 
restrain  them,  and  they  were  permitted  to  speak  unmolested. 

The  movement  was  chiefly  among  the  lower  class,  and 
it  was  in  the  humble  dwellings  of  the  laborers  that  the 
people  assembled  to  hear  the  warning.  The  child-preachers 
themselves  were  mostly  poor  cottagers.  Some  of  them  were 
not  more  thaa  six  or  eight  years  of  age,  and  while  their 
lives  testified  that  they  loved  the  Saviour,  and  were  trying  to 
live  in  obedience  to  God's  holy  requirements,  they  ordinarily 
manifested  only  the  intelligence  and  ability  usually  seen  in 
children  of  that  age.  When  standing  before  the  people, 
however,  it  was  evident  that  they  were  moved  by  an  influ- 
ence beyond  their  own  natural  gifts.  Tone  and  manner 
changed,  and  with  solemn  power  they  gave  the  warning  of 
the  Judgment,  employing  the  very  words  of  Scripture, 


A  GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING.  367 


"Fear  God,  and  give  glory  to  him;  for  the  hour  of  his 
Judgment  is  come."  They  reproved  the  sins  of  the  people, 
not  only  condemning  immorality  and  vice,  but  rebuking 
worldliness  and  backsliding,  and  warning  their  hearers  to 
make  haste  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come. 

The  people  heard  with  trembling.  The  convicting  Spirit 
of  God  spoke  to  their  hearts.  Many  were  led  to  search  the 
Scriptures  with  new  and  deeper  interest,  the  intemperate  and 
immoral  were  reformed,  others  abandoned  their  dishonest 
practices,  and  a  work  was  done  so  marked  that  even  minis- 
ters of  the  State  church  were  forced  to  acknowledge  that  the 
hand  of  God  was  in  the  movement. 

It  was  God's  will  that  the  tidings  of  the  Saviour's  coming 
should  be  given  in  the  Scandinavian  countries ;  and  when 
the  voices  of  his  servants  were  silenced,  ha  put  his  Spirit 
upon  the  children,  that  the  work  might  be  accomplished. 
When  Jesus  drew  near  to  Jerusalem  attended  by  the  rejoic- 
ing multitudes  that,  with  shouts  of  triumph  and  the  wav- 
ing of  palm,  branches,  heralded  him  as  the  Son  of  David, 
the  jealous  Pharisees  called  upon  him  to  silence  them;  but 
Jesus  answered  that  all  this  was  in  fulfillment  of  proph- 
ecy, and  if  these  should  hold  their  peace,  the  very  stones 
would  cry  out.  The  people,  intimidated  by  the  threats  of 
the  priests  and  rulers,  ceased  their  joyful  proclamation  as 
they  entered  the  gates  of  Jerusalem ;  but  the  children  in  the 
temple  courts  afterward  took  up  the  refrain,  and,  waving 
their  branches  of  palm,  they  cried,  "  Hosanna  to  the  Son 
of  David!"1  When  the  Pharisees,  sorely  displeased,  said 
unto  him,  "Hearest  thou  what  these  say?"  Jesus  answered, 
"Yea;  have  ye  never  read,  Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and 
sucklings  thou  hast  perfected  praise?"  As  God  wrought 
through  children  at  the  time  of  Christ's  first  advent,  so  he 
wrought  through  them  in  giving  the  message  of  his  second 
advent.  God's -Word  must  be  fulfilled,  that  the  proclamation 
of  the  Saviour's  coming  should  be  given  to  all  peoples, 
tongues,  and  nations. 

1Matt.  21  : 8- 16. 


368  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


To  William  Miller  and  his  co-laborers  it  was  given  to 
preach*  the  warning  in  America.  This  country  became  the 
center  of  the  great  Advent  movement.  It  was  here  that 
the  prophecy  of  the  first  angel's  message  had  its  most 
direct  fulfillment.  The  writings  of  Miller  and  his  asso- 
ciates were  carried  to  distant  lands.  Wherever  missionaries 
had  penetrated  in  all  the  world,  were  sent  the  glad  tidings 
of  Christ's  speedy  return.  Far  and  wide  spread  the  message 
of  the  everlasting  gospel,  "  Fear  God,  and  give  glory  to  him ; 
for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment  is  come." 

The  testimony  of  the  prophecies  which  seemed  to  point  to 
the  coming  of  Christ  in  the  spring  of  1844  took  deep  hold  of 
the  minds  of  the  people.  As  the  message  went  from  State 
to  State,  there  was  everywhere  awakened  widespread  interest. 
Many  were  convinced  that  the  arguments  from  the  prophetic 
periods  were  correct,  and,  sacrificing  their  pride  of  opinion, 
they  joyfully  received  the  truth.  Some  ministers  laid  aside 
their  sectarian  views  and  feelings,  left  their  salaries  and 
their  churches,  and  united  in  proclaiming  the  coming  of 
Jesus.  There  were  comparatively  few  ministers,  however, 
who  would  accept  this  message;  therefore  it  was  largely 
committed  to  humble  laymen.  Farmers  left  their  fields, 
mechanics  their  tools,  traders  their  merchandise,  professional 
men  their  positions;  and  yet  the  number  of  workers  was 
small  in  comparison  witli  the  work  to  be  accomplished.  The 
condition  of  an  ungodly  church  and  a  world  lying  in  wick- 
edness burdened  the  souls  of  the  true  watchmen,  and  they 
willingly  endured  toil,  privation,  and  suffering,  that  they 
might  call  men  to  repentance  unto  salvation.  Though 
opposed  by  Satan,  the  work  went  steadily  forward,  and  the 
Advent  truth  was  accepted  by  many  thousands. 

Kverywherc  the  searching  testimony  was  heard,  warning 
sinners,  both  worldlings  and  ehmvli-nieinhers,  to  flee  from 
the  wrath  to  come.  Like  John  the  Baptist,  the  forerunner 
of  Christ,  the  preachers  laid  the  ax  at  the  root  of  the  tree, 
and  urged  all  to  bring  forth  fruit  meet  for  repentance. 


A  ORE  A  T  RELIGIOUS  A  WA  KEN  ING.  369 

Their  stirring  appeals  were  in  marked  contrast  to  the  assur- 
ances of  peace  and  safety  that  were  heard  from  popular  pul- 
pits; and  wherever  the  message  was  given,  it  moved  the 
people.  The  simple,  direct  testimony  of  the  Scriptures,  set 
home  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  brought  a  weight  of 
conviction  which  few  were  able  wholly  to  resist.  Professors 
of  religion  were  roused  from  their  false  security.  They  saw 
their  backslidings,  their  worldliness  and  unbelief,  their  pride 
and  selfishness.  Many  sought  the  Lord  with  repentance  and 
humiliation.  The  affections  that  had  so  long  clung  to 
earthly  things  they  now  fixed  upon  Heaven.  The  Spirit  of 
God  rested  upon  them,  and  with  hearts  softened  and  sub- 
dued they  joined  to  sound  the  cry,  "Fear  God,  and  give 
glory  to  him ;  for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment  is  come." 

Sinners  inquired  with  weeping,  "What  must  I  do  to  be 
saved?"  Those  whose  lives  had  been  marked  with  dishon- 
esty were  anxious  to  make  restitution.  All  who  found  peace 
in  Christ  longed  to  see  others  share  the  blessing.  The  hearts 
of  parents  were  turned  to  their  children,  and  the  hearts  of 
children  to  their  parents.  The  barriers  ot  pride  and  reserve 
were  swept  away.  Heart-felt  confessions  were  made,  and 
the  members  of  the  household  labored  for  the  salvation  of 
those  who  were  nearest  and  dearest.  Often  was  heard  the 
sound  of  earnest  intercession.  Everywhere  were  souls  in  deep 
anguish,  pleading  with  God.  Many  wrestled  all  night  in 
prayer  for  the  assurance  that  their  own  sins  were  pardoned, 
or  for  the  conversion  of  their  relatives  or  neighbors. 

All  classes  flocked  to  the  Adventist  meetings.  Rich  and 
poor,  high  and  low,  were,  from  various  causes,  anxious  to 
hear  for  themselves  the  doctrine  of  the  second  advent.  The 
Lord  held  the  spirit  of  opposition  in  check  while  his  servants 
explained  the  reasons  of  their  faith.  Sometimes  the  instru- 
ment was  feeble;  but  the  Spirit  of  God  gave  power  to  his 
truth.  The  presence  of  holy  angels  was  felt  in  these  assem- 
blies, and  many  were  daily  added  to  the  believers.  As  the 
evidences  of  Christ's  soon  coming  were  repeated,  vast  crowds 

•28 


370  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

listened  in  breathless  silence  to  the  solemn  words.  Heaven 
and  earth  seemed  to  approach  each  other.  The  power  of 
God  was  felt  upon  old  and  young  and  middle-aged.  Men 
sought  their  homes  with  praises  upon  their  lips,  and  the  glad 
sound  rang  out  upon  the  still  night  air.  None  who  attended 
those  meetings  can  ever  forget  those  scenes  of  deepest  interest. 

The  proclamation  of  a  definite  time  for  Christ's  coming 
called  forth  great  opposition  from  many  of  all  classes,  from 
the  minister  in  the  pulpit  down  to  the  most  reckless,  Heaven- 
daring  sinner.  The  words  of  prophecy  were  fulfilled:  "There 
shall  come  in  the  last  days  scoffers,  walking  after  their 
own  lusts,  and  saying,  Where  is  the  promise  of  his  coming? 
for  since  the  fathers  fell  asleep,  all  things  continue  as  they 
were  from  the  beginning  of  the  creation."1  Many  who  pro- 
fessed to  love  the  Saviour,  declared  that  they  had  no  oppo- 
sition to  the  doctrine  of  the  second  advent;  they  merely 
objected  to  the  definite  time.  But  God's  all-seeing  eye  read 
their  hearts.  They  did  not  wish  to  hear  of  Christ's  coming 
to  judge  the  world  in  righteousness.  They  had  been  unfaith- 
ful servants,  their  works  would  not  bear  the  inspection  of  the 
heart-searching  God,  and  they  feared  to  meet  their  Lord. 
Like  the  Jews  at  the  time  of  Christ's  first  advent,  they  were 
not  prepared  to  welcome  Jesus.  They  not  only  refused  to 
listen  to  the  plain  arguments  from  the  Bible,  but  ridiculed 
those  who  were  looking  for  the  Lord.  Satan  and  his  angels 
exulted,  and  flung  the  taunt  in  the  face  of  Christ  and  holy 
angels,  that  his  professed  people  had  so  little  love  for  him 
that  they  did  not  desire  his  appearing. 

"No  man  knoweth  the  day  nor  the  hour,"  was  the  argu- 
ment jnost  often  brought  forward  by  rejecters  of  the  Advent 
faith.  The  scripture  is,  "  Of  that  day  and  hour  knoweth  no 
man,  no,  not  the  angels  of  Heaven,  but  my  Father  only." a  A 
clear  and  harmonious  explanation  of  this  text  was  given  by 
those  who  were  looking  for  the  Lord,  and  the  wrong  us< 
made  of  it  by  .their  opponents  was  rlcjirly  shown.  The 

1 2  Peter  3  :  3,  4.  '  Matt .  24  :  36. 


A   GREAT  RELIGIOUS  AWAKENING.  371 


words  were  spoken  by  Christ  in  that  memorable  conversa- 
tion with  his  disciples  upon  Olivet,  after  he  had  for  the  last 
time  departed  from  the  temple.  The  disciples  had  asked 
the  question,  "  What  shall  be  the  sign  of  thy  coming,  and  of 
the  end  of  the  world?"  Jesus  gave  them  signs,  and  said, 
"  When  ye  shall  see  all  these  things,  know  that  it  is  near, 
even  at  the  doors."1  One  saying  of  the  Saviour  must  not 
be  made  to  destroy  another.  Though  no  man  knoweth  the 
day  nor  the  hour  of  his  coming,  we  are  instructed  and 
required  to  know  when  it  is  near.  We  are  further  taught 
that  to  disregard  his  warning,  and  refuse  or  neglect  to  know 
when  his  advent  is  near,  will  be  as  fatal  for  us,  as  it  was  for 
those  who  lived  in  the  days  of  Noah  not  to  know  when  the 
flood  was  coming.  And^the  parable  in  the  same  chapter 
contrasting  the  faithful  and  the  unfaithful  servant,  and 
giving  the  doom  of  him  who  said  in  his  heart,  "  My  Lord 
delayeth  his  coming,"  shows  in  what  light  Christ  will  regard 
and  reward  those  whom  he  finds  watching,  and  teaching  his 
coming,  and  those  denying  it.  "  Watch  therefore,"  he  says; 
"blessed  is  that  servant,  whom  his  Lord  when  he  cometh 
shall  find  so  doing."1  "  If  therefore  thou  shalt  not  watch,  I 
will  come  on  thee  as  a  thief,  and  thou  shalt  not  know  what 
hour  I  will  come  upon  thee." 2 

Paul  speaks  of  a  class  to  whom  the  Lord's  appearing  will 
come  unawares.  "  The  day  of  the  Lord  so  cometh  as  a  thief 
in  the  night.  For  when  they  shall  say,  Peace  and  safety^ 
then  sudden  destruction  cometh  upon  them,  .  .  .  and 
they  shall  not  escape."  But  he  adds,  to  those  who  have 
given  heed  to  the  Saviour's  warning,  "Ye,  brethren,  are 
not  in  darkness,  that  that  day  should  overtake  you  as  a 
thief.  Ye  are  all  the  children  of  light,  and  the  children  of 
the  day;  we  are  not  of  the  night,  nor  of  darkness."3 

Thus  it  was  shown  that  Scripture  gives  no  warrant  for 
men  to  remain  in  ignorance  concerning  the  nearness  of 
Christ's  coming.  But  those  who  desired  only  an  excuse  to 

1  Matt.  24  :  3,  33,  42-51.  '  Rev.  3:3.  s  1  Thess.  5  :  2-0, 


372  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

reject  the  truth  closed  their  ears  U>  this  explanation;  and 
the  words,  "No  man  knoweth  the  day  nor  the  hour,"  con- 
tinued to  be  echoed  by  the  bold  scoffer,  and  even  by  the 
professed  minister  of  Christ.  As  the  people  were  roused, 
and  began  to  inquire  the  way  of  salvation,  religious  teachers 
stepped  in.  between  them  and  the  truth,  seeking  to  quiet 
their  fears  by  falsely  interpreting  the  Word  of  God.  Un- 
faithful watchmen  united  in  the  work  of  the  great  deceiver, 
crying,  Peace,  peace,  when  God  had  not  spoken  peace.  Like 
the  Pharisees  in  Christ's  day,  many  refused  to  enter  the 
kingdom  of  Heaven  themselves,  and  those  who  wrere  enter- 
ing in,  they  hindered.  The  blood  of  these  souls  will  be 
required  at  their  hand. 

The  most  humble  and  devoted  in  the  churches  were 
usually  the  first  to  receive  the  message.  Those  who  studied 
the  Bible  for  themselves  could  not  but  see  the  unscriptural 
character  of  the  popular  views  of  prophecy,  and  wherever 
the  people  were  not  controlled  by  the  influence  of  the  clergy, 
wherever  they  would  search  the  Word  of  God  for  themselves, 
the  Advent  doctrine  needed  only  to  be  compared  with  the 
Scriptures  to  establish  its  divine  authority. 

Many  were  persecuted  by  their  unbelieving  brethren.  In 
order  to  retain  their  position  in  the  church,  some  consented 
to  be  silent  in  regard  to  their  hope;  but  others  felt  that 
loyalty  to  God  forbade  them  thus  to  hide  the  truths  which 
he  had  committed  to  their  trust.  Not  a  few  were  cut  oil 
from  the  fellowship  of  the  church  for  no  other  reason  than 
expressing  their  belief  in  the  coming  of  Christ.  Very  pre- 
cious to  those  who  bore  this  trial  of  their  faith  were  tin- 
words  of  the  prophet,  "Your  brethren  that  hated  you,  that 
cast  you  out  for  my  name's  sake,  said,  Let  the  Lord  be 
glorified.  But  he  shall  appear  to  your  joy,  and  they  shall 
be  ashamed." l 

Angels  of  God  were  watching  with  the  deepest  interest 
the  result  of  the  warning.  When  there  was  a  general 
rejection  of  the  message  by  the  churches,  angels  turned 

ll*a.  66:5. 


A  ORE  A  T  nELJGIOUS  AWAKENING.  373 

away  in  sadness.  Yet  there  were  many  who  had  not  yet 
been  tested  in  regard  to  the  Advent  truth.  Many  were 
misled  by  husbands,  wives,  parents,  or  children,  and  were 
made  to  believe  it  a  sin  even  to  listen  to  such  heresies  as 
were  taught  by  the  Adventists.  Angels  were  bidden  to  keep 
faithful  watch  over  these  souls;  for  another  light  was  yet  to 
shine  upon  them  from  the  throne  of  God. 

With  unspeakable  desire  those  who  had  received  the 
message  watched  for  the  coming  of  their  Saviour.  The 
time  when  they  expected  to  meet  him  was  at  hand.  They 
approached  this  hour  with  a  calm  solemnity.  They  rested 
in  sweet  communion  with  God,  an  earnest  of  the  peace  that 
was  to  be  theirs  in  the  bright  hereafter.  None  who  experi- 
enced this  hope  and  trust  can  forget  those  precious  hours  of 
waiting.  For  some  weeks  preceding  the  time,  worldly  bus- 
iness was  for  the  most  part  laid  aside.  The  sincere  believers 
carefully  examined  every  thought  and  emotion  of  their 
hearts  as  if  upon  their  death-beds  and  in  a  few  hours  to  close 
their  eyes  upon  earthly  scenes.  There  was  no  making  of 
"ascension  robes;"1  but  all  felt  the  need  of  internal  evidence 
that  they  were  prepared  to  meet  the  Saviour;  their  white 
robes  were  purity  of  soul, — characters  cleansed  from  sin  by 
the  atoning  blood  of  Christ.  Would  that  there  was  still 
with  the  professed  people  of  God  the  same  spirit  of  heart- 
searching,  the  same  earnest,  determined  faith.  Had  they 
continued  thus  to  humble  themselves  before  the  Lord,  and 
press  their  petitions  at  the  mercy-seat,  they  would  be  in 
possession  of  a  far  richer  experience  than  they  now  have. 
There  is  too  little  prayer,  too  little  real  conviction  of  sin, 
and  the  lack  of  living  faith  leaves  many  destitute  of  the 
grace  so  richly  provided  by  our  Redeemer. 

God  designed  to  prove  his  people.  His  hand  covered  a 
mistake  in  the  reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods. 2  Advent- 
ists did  not  discover  the  error,  nor  was  it  discovered  by  the 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  4. 

'See  diagram  opposite  p.  328;    also  Appendix,  Note  3. 


3?4  T1IK   GttEAT  CONTROVERSY. 


most  learned  of  their  opponents.  The  latter  said:  "Your 
reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods  is  correct.  Some  great 
event  is  about  to  take  place;  but  it  is  not  what  Mr.  Miller 
predicts;  it  is  the  conversion  of  the  world,  and  not  the  sec- 
ond advent  of  Christ." 

The  time  of  expectation  passed,  and  Christ  did  not  appear 
for*  the  deliverance  of  his  people.  Those  who  with  sincere 
faith  and  love  had  looked  for  their  Saviour,  experienced  a 
bitter  disappointment.  Yet  the  purposes  of  God  were  being 
accomplished:  he  was  testing  the  hearts  of  those  who  pro- 
fessed to  be  waiting  for  his  appearing.  There  were  among 
them  many  who  had  been  actuated  by  no  higher  motive 
than  fear.  Their  profession  of  faith  had  not  affected  their 
hearts  or  their  lives.  When  the  expected  event  failed  to 
take  place,  these  persons  declared  that  they  were  not  dis- 
appointed; they  had  never  believed  that  Christ  would  come. 
They  were  among  the  first  to  ridicule  the  sorrow  of  the  true 
believers. 

But  Jesus  and  all  the  heavenly  host  looked  with  love  and 
sympathy  upon  the  tried  and  faithful  yet  disappointed  ones. 
Could  the  veil  separating  the  visible  from  the  invisible 
world  have  been  swept  back,  angels  would  have  been  seen 
drawing  near  to  these  steadfast  souls,  and  shielding  them 
from  the  shafts  of  Satan. 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  5. 


CHAPTER   XXI. 


A  WARNING  REJECTED. 

IN  preaching  the  doctrine  of  the  second  advent,  William 
Miller  and  his  associates  had  labored  with  the  sole  purpose 
of  arousing  men  to  a  preparation  for  the  Judgment.  They 
had  sought  to  awaken  professors  of  religion  to  the  true  hope 
of  the  church,  and  to  their  need  of  a  deeper  Christian  expe- 
rience; and  they  labored  also  to  awaken  the  unconverted  to 
the  duty  of  immediate  repentance  and  conversion  to  God. 
"They  made  no  attempt  to  convert  men  to  a  sect  or  party 
in  religion.  Hence  they  labored  among  all  parties  and 
sects,  without  interfering  with  their  organization  or  dis- 
cipline." 

"  In  all  my  labors,"  said  Miller,  "  I  never  had  the  desire 
or  thought  to  establish  any  separate  interest  from  that  of 
existing  denominations,  or  to  benefit  one  at  the  expense  of 
another.  I  thought  to  benefit  all.  Supposing  that  all  Chris- 
tians would  rejoice  in  the  prospect  of  Christ's  coming,  and 
that  those  who  could  not  see  as  I  did  would  not  love  any 
the  less  those  who  should  embrace  this  doctrine,  I  did  not 
conceive  there  would  ever  be  any  necessity  for  separate 
meetings.  My  whole  object  was  a  desire  to  convert  souls  to 
God,  to  notify  the  world  of  a  coming  Judgment,  and  to 
induce  my  fellow-men  to  make  that  preparation  of  heart 
which  will  enable  them  to  meet  their  God  in  peace.  The 
great  majority  of  those  who  were  converted  under  my  labors 
united  with  the  various  existing  churches." 

As  his  work  tended  to  build  up  the  churches,  it  was  for  a 
time  regarded  with  favor.  But  as  ministers  and  religious 
leaders  decided  against  the  Advent  doctrine,  and  desired  to 

(375) 


376  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


suppress  all  agitation  of  the  subject,  they  not  only  opposed 
it  from  the  pulpit,  but  denied  their  members  the  privilege 
of  attending  preaching  upon  the  second  advent,  or  even  of 
speaking  of  their  hope  in  the  social  meetings  of  the  church. 
Thus  the  believers  found  themselves  in  a  position  of  great 
trial  and  perplexity.  They  loved  their  churches,  and  were 
loth  to  separate  from  them ;  but  as  they  saw  the  testimony 
of  God's  Word  suppressed,  and  their  right  to  investigate  the 
prophecies  denied,  they  felt  that  loyalty  to  God  forbade 
them  to  submit.  Those  who  sought  to  shut  out  the  testi- 
mony of  God's  Word  they  could  not  regard  as  constituting 
the  church  of  Christ,  "the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth." 
Hence  they  felt  themselves  justified  in  separating  from  their 
former  connection.  In  the  summer  of  1844  about  fifty 
thousand  withdrew  from  the  churches. 

About  this  time  a  marked  change  was  apparent  in  most 
of  the  churches  throughout  the  United  States.  There;  had 
been  for  many  years  a  gradual  but  steadily  increasing  con- 
formity to  worldly  practices  and  customs,  and  a  correspond- 
ing decline  in  real  spiritual  life;  but  in  that  year  there  were 
evidences  of  a  suclden  and  marked  declension,  in  nearly  nil 
the  churches  of  the  land.  While  none  seemed  able  to  suggest 
the  cause,  the  fact  itself  was  widely  noted  and  commented 
upon,  both  by  the  press  and  the  pulpit. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  presbytery  of  Philadelphia,  Mr. 
Barnes,  author  of  the  commentary  so  widely  used,  and  pas- 
tor of  one  of  the  leading  churches  in  that  city,  "stated  Hint 
he  had  been  in  the  ministry  for  twenty  years,  and  never 
till  the  last  communion  had  he  administered  the  ordinance 
without  receiving  more  or  less  into  the  church.  But  now 
there  are  no  awakenings,  no  conversions,  noi  much  apparent 
growth  in  grace  in  professors,  nnd  none  come  to  his  study 
to  converse  about  th(3  salvation  of  their  souls.  With  the 
increase  of  business,  and  the  brightening  prospects  of  com- 
merce and  manufactures,  there  is  an  increase  of  worldly- 
.mindedness.  Thus  it  is  with  all  denominations" 


A    WARNING  REJECTED.  377 


in  the  month  of  February  of  the  same  year,  Professor 
Finney,  of  Oberlin  College,  said:  "We  have  had  the  facts 
before  our  minds,  that,  in  general,  the  Protestant  churches 
of  our  country,  as  such,  were  either  apathetic  or  hostile  to 
nearly  all  the  moral  reforms  of  the  age.  There  are  par- 
tial exceptions,  yet  not  enough  to  render  the  fact  otherwise 
than  general.  We  have  also  another  corroborative  fact, — 
the  almost  universal  absence  of  revival  influence  in  the 
churches.  The  spiritual  apathy  is  almost  all-pervading,  and 
is  fearfully  deep;  so  the  religious  press  of  the  whole  land 
testifies.  Very  extensively,  church-members  are  becoming 
devotees  of  fashion,  joining  hands  with  the  ungodly  in  par- 
ties of  pleasure,  in  dancing,  in  festivities,  etc.  But  we  need 
not  expand  this  painful  subject.  Suffice  it  that  the  evidence 
thickens  and  rolls  heavily  upon  us,  to  show  that  the  churches 
generally  are  becoming  sadly  degenerate.  They  have  gone 
very  far  from  the  Lord,  and  he  has  withdrawn  himself  from 
them." 

And  a  writer  in  the  Religions  Telescope  testified :  "  We  have 
never  witnessed  such  a  general  declension  as  at  present. 
Truly,  the  church  should  awake,  and  search  into  the  cause 
of  this  affliction;  for  an  affliction  every  one  that  loves  Zion 
must  view  it.  When  we  call  to  mind  how  few  and  far 
between  cases  of  true  conversion  are,  and  the  almost  unpar- 
alleled impenitence  and  hardness  of  sinners,  we  almost 
involuntarily  exclaim,  'Has  God  forgotten  to  be  gracious? 
or  is  the  door  of  mercy  closed? ' ' 

Such  a  condition  never  exists  without  cause  in  the  church 
itself.  The  spiritual  darkness  which  falls  upon  nations, 
upon  churches  and  individuals,  is  due,  not  to  an  arbitrary 
withdrawal  of  the  succors  of  divine  grace  on  the  part  of 
God,  but  to  neglect  or  rejection  of  divine  light  on  the  part  of 
men.  A  striking  illustration  of  this  truth  is  presented  in 
the  history  of  the  Jewish  people  in  the  time  of  Christ.  By 
their  devotion  to  the  world  and  forgetfulness  of  God  and 
his  Word,  their  understanding  had  become  darkened,  their 


378  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


hearts  earthly  and  sensual.  Thus  they  were  in  ignorance 
concerning  Messiah's  advent,  and  in  their  pride  and  unbelief 
they  rejected  the  Redeemer.  God  did  not  even  then  cut  off 
the  Jewish  nation  from  a  knowledge  of,  or  a  participation 
in,  the  blessings  of  salvation.  But  those  who  rejected  the 
truth  lost  all  desire  for  the  gift  of  Heaven.  They  had  "put 
darkness  for  light,  and  light  for  darkness,"  until  the  light 
which  was  in  them  became  darkness;  and  how  great  was 
that  darkness! 

It  suits  the  policy  of  Satan,  that  men  should  retain  the 
forms  of  religion,  if  but  the  spirit  of  vital  godliness  is  lack- 
ing. After  their  rejection  of  the  gospel,  the  Jews  continued 
zealously  to  maintain  their  ancient  rites,  they  rigorously 
preserved  their  national  exclusiveness,  while  they  them- 
selves could  not  but  admit  that  the  presence  of  God  was 
no  longer  manifest  among  them.  The  prophecy  of  Daniel 
pointed  so  unmistakably  to  the  time  of  Messiah's  coming, 
and  so  directly  foretold  his  death,  that  they  discouraged  its 
study,  and  finally  the  rabbis  pronounced  a  curse  on  all  who 
should  attempt  a  computation  of  the  time.  In  blindness 
and  impenitence,  the  people  of  Israel  for  eighteen  hundred 
years  have  stood,  indifferent  to  the  gracious  offers  of  salva- 
tion, unmindful  of  the  blessings  of  the  gospel,  a  solemn 
and  fearful  warning  of  the  danger  of  rejecting  light  from 
Heaven. 

Wherever  the  cause  exists,  the  same  results  will'  follow. 
He  who  deliberately  stifles  his  convictions  of  duty  because 
it  interferes  with  his  inclinations,  will  finally  lose  the  power 
to  distinguish  between  truth  and  error.  The  understanding 
becomes  darkened,  the  conscience  callous,  the  heart  hard- 
ened, and  the  soul  is  separated  from  God.  Where  the  mes- 
sage of  divine  truth  is  spurned  or  slighted,  there  the  church 
will  be  enshrouded  in  darkness;  faith  and  love  grow  cold, 
and  estrangement  and  dissension  enter.  Church-members 
center  their  interests  and  energies  in  worldly  pursuits,  and 
sinners  become  hardened  in  their  impenitence. 


A    WARNINU  HKJECTKD.  .  379 

The  first  angel's  message  of  llevelatioii  14,  announcing 
the  'hour  of  God's  Judgment,  and  calling  upon  men  to  fear 
and  worship  him,  was  designed  to  separate  the  professed 
people  of  God  from  the  corrupting  influences  of  the  world, 
and  to  arouse  them  to  see  their  true  condition  of  worldli- 
ness  and  backsliding.  In  this  message,  God  had  sent  to  the 
church  a  warning,  which,  had  it  been  accepted,  would  have 
corrected  the  evils  that  were  shutting  them  away  from  him. 
Had  they  received  the  message  from  Heaven,  humbling 
their  hearts  before  the  Lord,  and  seeking  in  sincerity  a  prep- 
aration to  stand  in  his  presence,  the  Spirit  and  power  of  God 
would  have  been  manifested  among  them.  The  church 
would  again  have  reached  that  blessed  state  of  unity,  faith, 
and  love,  which  existed  in  apostolic  days,  when  the  believers 
were  of  "  one  heart  and  of  one  soul,"  and  "  spake  the  word  of 
God  with  boldness,"  when  "the  Lord  added  to  the  church 
daily  such  as  should  be  saved." 1 

If  God's  professed  people  would  receive  the  light  as  it 
shines  upon  them  from  his  Word,  they  would  reach  that 
unity  for  which  Christ  prayed,  that  which  the  apostle  de- 
scribes, "the  unity  of  the  Spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace." 
"  There  is,"  he  says,  "  one  bodyK  and  one  Spirit,  even  as  ye 
are  called  in  one  hope  of  your  calling;  one  Lord,  one  faith, 
one  baptism." 2 

Such  were  the  blessed  results  experienced  by  those  who  ac- 
cepted the  Advent  message.  They  "  came  from  different  de- 
nominations, and  their  denominational  barriers  were  hurled 
to  the  ground;  conflicting  creeds  were  shivered  to  atoms; 
the  unscriptural  hope  of  a  temporal  millennium  was  aban- 
doned, false  views  of  the  second  advent  were  corrected,  pride 
and  conformity  to  the  world  were  swept  away;  wrongs  were 
made  right;  hearts  were  united  in  the  sweetest  fellowship, 
and  love  and  joy  reigned  supreme.  If  this  doctrine  did 
this  for  the  few  who  did  receive  it,  it  would  have  done  the 
same  for  all,  if  all  had  received  it." 

1  Acts  4  :  32,  31  ;  2  : 47 .  *  Eph.  4  :  3-5. 


380  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

But  the  churches  generally  did  not  accept  the  warning. 
Their  ministers,  who  as  "  watchmen  unto  the  house  of  Israel," 
should  have  heen  the  first  to  discern  the  tokens  of  Jesus' 
coming,  had  failed  to  learn  the  truth,  either  from  the  testi- 
mony of  the  prophets  or  from  the  signs  of  the  times.  As 
worldly  hopes  and  ambitions  filled  the  heart,  love  for  God 
and  faith  in  his  Word  had  grown  cold,  and  when  the  Advent 
doctrine  was  presented,  it  only  aroused  their  prejudice  and 
unbelief.  The  fact  that  the  message  was,  to  a  great  extent, 
preached  by  laymen,  was  urged  as  an  argument  against  it. 
As  of  old,  the  plain  testimony  of  God's  Word  was  met  with 
the  inquiry,  "Have  any  of  the  rulers  or  of  the  Pharisees 
believed?"  And  finding  how  difficult  a  task  it  was  to  refute 
the  arguments  drawn  from  the  prophetic  periods,  many  dis- 
couraged the  study  of  the  prophecies,  teaching  that  the 
prophetic  books  were  sealed,  and  were  not  to  be  understood. 
Multitudes,  trusting  implicitly  to  their  pastors,  refused  to 
listen  to  the  warning;  and  others,  though  convinced  of  the 
truth,  dared  not  confess  it,  lest  they  should  be  "put  out  of 
the  synagogue."  The  message  which  God  had  sent  for  the 
testing  and  purification  of  the  church,  revealed  all  too  surely 
how  great  was  the  number  who  had  set  their  affections  on 
this  world  rather  than  upon  Christ.  The  ties  which  bound 
them  to  earth  wrere  stronger  than  the  attractions  heaven- 
ward. They  chose  to  listen  to  the  voice  of  worldly  wisdom, 
and  turned  away  from  the  heart-searching  message  of  truth. 

In  refusing  the  warning  of  the  first  angel,  they  rejected 
the  means  which  Heaven  had  provided  for  their  restoration. 
They  spurned  the  gracious  messenger  that  would  have  cor- 
rected the  evils  which  separated  them  from  God,  and  witli 
greater  eagerness  they  turned  to  seek  the  friendship  of  the 
world.  Here  was  the  cause  of  that  fearful  condition  of 
worldliness,  backsliding,  and  spiritual  death  which  existed  in 
the  churches  in  1844. 

In  Revelation  14,  the  first  angel  is  followed  by  a  second, 
proclaiming,  "Babylon  is  fallen,  is  fallen,  that  great  city, 


A   WARNING  REJECTED.  381 


because  she  made  all  nations  drink  of  the  wine  of  the 
wnith  of  her  fornication."1  The  term  Babylon  is  derived 
from  Babel,  and  signifies  confusion.  It  is  employed  in 
Scripture  to  designate  the  various  forms  of  false  or  apostate 
religion.  In  Revelation  17,  Babylon  is  represented  as  a 
woman,  a  figure  which  is  used  in  the  Bible  as  the  symbol  of 
a  church,  a  virtuous  woman  representing  a  pure  church,  a 
vile  woman  an  apostate  church. 

In  the  Bible  the  sacred,  and  enduring  character  of  the 
relation  that  exists  between  Christ  and  his  church  is  repre- 
sented by  the  union  of  marriage.  The  Lord  has  joined  his 
people  to  himself  by  a  solemn  covenant,  he  promising  to  be 
their  God,  and  they  pledging  themselves  to  be  his,  and  his 
alone.  He  declares,  "I  will  betroth  thee  unto  me  forever; 
yea,  I  will  betroth  thee  unto  me  in  righteousness,  and  in 
judgment,  and  in  loving-kindness,  and  in  mercies."2  And 
again,  "I  am  married  unto  you."5  And  Paul  employs  the 
same  figure  in  the  New  Testament,  when  he  says,  "I  have 
espoused  you  to  one  husband,  that  I  may  present  you  as  a 
chaste  virgin  to  Christ."  * 

The  unfaithfulness  of  the  church  to  Christ  in  permitting 
her  confidence  and  affection  to  be  turned  from  him,  and 
allowing  the  love  of  worldly  things  to  occupy  the  soul,  is 
likened  to  the  violation  of  the  marriage  vow.  The  sin  of 
Israel  in  departing  from  the  Lord  is  presented  under  this 
figure;  and  the  wonderful  love  of  God  which  they  thus 
despised  is  touchingly  portrayed.  "  I  sware  unto  thee,  and 
entered  into  a  covenant  with  thee,  saith  the  Lord  God,  and 
thou  becamest  mine."  "And  thou  wast  exceeding  beautiful, 
and  thou  didst  prosper  into  a  kingdom.  And  thy  renown 
went  forth  among  the  heathen  for  thy  beauty;  for  it  was 
perfect  through  my  comeliness,  which  I  had  put  upon  thee. 
.  .  .  But  thou  didst  trust  in  thine  own  beauty,  and  play- 
edst  the  harlot  because  of  thy  renown."  "As  a  wife  treach- 
erously departeth  from  her  husband,  so  have  ye  dealt  treach- 

1  Rev.  14  :  8.         2  Hos.  2  :  19.          £  Jer.  3  : 14.         <  2  Cor.  11:2. 


THE    GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


erously  with  me,  0  house  of  Israel,  saith  the  Lord;"  "as  a 
wife  that  committeth  adultery,  which  taketh  strangers  instead 
of  her  husband."  * 

In  the  New  Testament",  language  very  similar  is  addressed 
to  professed  Christians  who  seek  the  friendship  of  the  world 
above  the  favor  of  God.  Says  the  apostle  James:  "Ye  adul- 
terers and  adulteresses,  know  ye  not  that  the  friendship  of 
the  world  is  enmity  with  God?  whosoever  therefore  will  be 
a  friend  of  the  world  is  the  enemy  of  God." 

The  woman,  Babylon,  of  Revelation  17,  is  described  as 
"arrayed. in  purple  and  scarlet  color,  and  decked  with  gold 
and  precious  stones  and  pearls,  having  a  golden  cup  in  her 
hand  full  of  abominations  and  filthiness.  .  .  .  And  upon 
her  forehead  was  a  name  written,  Mystery,  Babylon  the 
Great,  the  mother  of  harlots."  Says  the  prophet,  "I  saw 
the  woman  drunken  with  the  blood  of  the  saints,  and  with 
the  blood  of  the  martyrs  of  Jesus."  :  Babylon  is  further, 
declared  to  be  "that  great  city,  which  reigneth  over  the 
kings  of  the  earth."3  The  power  that  for  so  many  cent- 
uries maintained  despotic  sway  over  the  monarchs  of  Chris- 
tendom, is  Rome.  The  purple  and  scarlet  color,  the  gold 
and  precious  stones  and  pearls,  vividly  picture  the  mag- 
nificence and  more  than  kingly  pomp  affected  by  the 
haughty  see  of  Rome.  And  no  other  power  could  be  so 
truly  declared  "  drunken  with  the  blood  of  the  saints "  as 
that  church  which  has  so  cruelly  persecuted  the  followers  of 
Christ.  Babylon  is  also  charged  with  the  sin  of  unlawful 
connection  with  "the  kings  of  the  earth."  It  was  by  depart- 
ure from  the  Lord,  and  alliance  with  the  heathen,  that  tli<i 
Jewish  church  became  a  harlot;  and  Rome,  corrupting  her- 
self in  like  manner  by  seeking  the  support  of  worldly  powers, 
receives  a  like  condemnation. 

Babylon  is  said  to  be  "the  mother  of  harlots."  By  her 
daughters  must  be  symbolized  churches  that  clmg  to  her  doc- 
trines and  traditions,  and  follow  her  example  of  sacrificing 

1  Eze.  16:8,  13-15,  32;  Jer.  3  :  20.       'L  Rev.  17  :  4^6.       3  Rev.  17  :  1$. 


A    WARNING  REJECTED.  383 


the  truth  and  the  approval  of  God,  in  order  to  form  an 
unlawful  alliance  with  the  world.  The  message  of  Revela- 
tion 1.4  announcing  the  fall  of  Babylon,  must  apply  to  relig- 
ious bodies  that  were  once  pure  and  have  become  corrupt. 
Since  this  message  follows  the  warning  of  the  Judgment,  it 
must  be  given  in  the  last  days,  therefore  it  cannot  refer  to 
the  Romish  Church,  for  that  church  has  been  in  a  fallen 
condition  for  many  centuries.  Furthermore,  in  the  eight- 
eenth chapter  of  the  Revelation,  in  a  message  which  is  yet 
future,  the  people  of  God  are  called  upon  to  come  out  of 
Babylon.  According  to  this  scripture,  many  of  God's  people 
must  still  be  in  Babylon.  And  in  what  religious  bodies  are 
the  greater  part  of  the  followers  of  Christ  now  to  be  found  ? 
Without  doubt,  in  the  various  churches  professing  the  Prot- 
estant faith.  At  the  time  of  their  rise,  these  churches  took 
a  noble  stand  for  God  and  the  truth,  and  his  blessing  was 
with  them.  Even  the  unbelieving  world  was  constrained 
to  acknowledge  the  beneficent  results  that  followed  an 
acceptance  of  the  principles  of  the  gospel.  In  the  words 
of  the  prophet  to  Israel,  "Thy  renown  went  forth  among 
the  heathen  for  thy  beauty ;  for  it  was  perfect  through  my 
comeliness,  which  I  had  put  upon  thee,  saith  the  Lord  God." 
But  they  fell  by  the  same  desire  which  was  the  curse  and 
ruin  of  Israel, — the  desire  of  imitating  the  practices  and 
courting  the  friendship  of  the  ungodly.  "  Thou  didst  trust 
in  thine  own  beauty,  and  playedst  the  harlot  because  of  thy 


renown." 


Many  of  the  Protestant  churches  are  following  Rome's 
example  of  iniquitous  connection  with  "the  kings  of  the 
earth ; "  the  State  churches,  by  their  relation  to  secular  gov- 
ernments, and  other  denominations  by  seeking  the  favor  of 
the  world.  And  the  term  Babylon — confusion— may  be 
appropriately  applied  to  these  bodies,  all  professing  to  derive 
their  doctrines  from  the  Bible,  yet  divided  into  almost  innu- 
merable sects,  with  widely  conflicting  creeds  and  theories. 

Besides  a  sinful  union  with  the  world,  the  churches  that 
separated  from  Rome  present  other  of  her  characteristics. 


384  TllK  GUE AT  CONTROVERSY. 

A  Romish  work — the  "  Catholic  Christian  Instructed  "- 
makes  the  charge:  "If  the  Church  of  Rome  was  ever  guilty 
of    idolatry  in   relation   to  the   saints,   her  daughter,   the 
( 1  lurch  of  England,  stands  guilty  of  the  same,  which  has  ton 
churches  dedicated  to  Mary  for  one  dedicated  to  Christ." 

And  Mr.  Hopkins,  in  a  treatise  on  the  Millennium, 
declares:  "There  is  no  reason  to  consider  the  antichristian 
spirit  and  practices  confined  to  what  is  now  called  the 
Church  of  Rome.  The  Protestant  churches  have  much  of 
antichrist  in  them,  and  are  far  from  being  wholly  reformed 
from  corruption  and  wickedness." 

Concerning  the  separation  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
from  Rome,  Dr.  Guthrie  writes:  "Three  hundred  years  ago, 
our  church,  with  an  open  Bible  on  her  banner,  and  this 
motto,  'Search  the  Scriptures,'  on  her  scroll,  marched  out 
from  the  gates  of  Rome."  Then  he  asks  the  significant 
question,  "Did  they  come  dean  out  of  Babylon?" 

"  The  Church  of  England,"  says  Spurgeon,  "  seems  to  be 
eaten  through  and  through  with  sacramentarianism ;  but 
non-conformity  appears  to  be  almost  as  badly  riddled  with 
philosophical  infidelity.  Those  of  whom  we  thought  better 
things  are  turning  aside  one  by  one  from  the  fundamentals 
of  the  faith.  Through  and  through,  I  believe,  the  very 
heart  of  England  is  honeycombed  with  a  damnable  infidel- 
ity which  dares  still  go  into  the  pulpit  and  call  itself 
Christian." 

What  was  the  origin  of  the  great  apostasy?  How  did  the 
church  first  depart  from  the  simplicity  of  the  gospel? — By 
conforming  to  the  practices  of  paganism,  to  facilitate  tin- 
acceptance  of  Christianity  by  the  heathen.  The  apostle 
Paul  declared,  even  in  his  day,  "The  mystery  of  iniquity 
doth  already  work."1  During  the  lives  of  the  apostles  the 
•church  remained  comparatively  pure.  "But  toward  the 
latter  end  of  the  second  century  most  of  the  churches 
assumed  a  new  form,  the  first  simplicity  disappeared;  and 
insensibly,  as  the  old  disciples  retired  to  their  graves,  their 

'L'Thess.  2:7. 


A    WARNING  REJECTED.  385 


children,  along  with  new  converts  .  .  .  came  forward 
and  new-modeled  the  cause."1  To  secure  converts,  the 
exalted  standard  of  the  Christian  faith  was  lowered,  and  as 
the  result  "  a  pagan  flood,  flowing  into  the  church,  carried 
with  it  its  customs,  practices,  and  idols."2  As  the  Christian 
religion  secured  the  favor  and  support  of  secular  rulers, 
it  was  nominally  accepted  by  multitudes;  but  while  in  ap- 
pearance Christians,  many  "  remained  in  substance  pagans, 
especially  worshiping  in  secret  their  idols." 2 

Has  not  the  same  process  been  repeated  in  nearly  every 
church  calling  itself  Protestant?  As  its  founders,  those  who 
possessed  the  true  spirit  of  reform,  pass  away,  their  descend- 
ants come  forward  and  "new?  model  the  cause."  While 
blindly  clinging  to  the  creed  of  their  fathers  and  refusing  to 
accept  any  truth  in  advance  of  what  they  saw,  the  children 
of  the  reformers  depart  widely  from  their  example  of  humil- 
ity, self-denial,  and*  renunciation  of  the  world.  Thus  "the 
first  simplicity  disappears."  A  worldly  flood,  flowing  into 
the  church,  "carries  with  it  its  customs,  practices,  and  idols." 

Alas,  to  what  a  fearful  extent  is  that  friendship  of  the 
world  which  is  "  enmity  with  God,"  now  cherished  among 
the  professed  followers  of  Christ!  How  widely  have  the 
popular  churches  throughout  Christendom  departed  from 
the  Bible  standard  of  humility,  self-denial,  simplicity,  and 
godliness!  Said  John  Wesley,  in  speaking  of  the  right  use  of 
money:  "  Do  not  waste  any  part  of  so  precious  a  talent,  merely 
in  gratifying  the  desire  of  the  eye,  by  superfluous  and  expen- 
sive apparel,  or  by  needless  ornaments.  Waste  no  part  of  it  in 
curiously  adorning  your  houses ;  in  superfluous  or  expensive 
furniture;  in  costly  pictures,  painting,  gilding."  "Lay  out 
nothing  to  gratify  the  pride  of  life,  to  gain  the  admiration 
or  praise  of  men."  "  '  So  long  as  thou  doest  well  unto  thy- 
self, men  will  speak  good  of  thee.'  So  long  as  thou  art 
'  clothed  in  purple  and  fine  linen,  and  farest  sumptuously 
every  day/  no  doubt  many  will  applaud  thine  elegance  of 

1  Robinson,  in  History  of  Baptism.  2Oavazzi's  Lectures,  p.  290. 

29 


386  THE  GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


taste,  thy  generosity  and  hospitality.  But  do  not  buy  their 
applause  so  dear.  Rather  be  content  with  the  honor  that 
cometh  from  God."  But  in  many  churches  of  our  time,  such 
teaching  is  disregarded. 

A  profession  of  religion  has  become  popular  with  the 
world.  Rulers,  politicians,  lawyers,  doctors,  merchants,  join 
the  church  as  a  means  of  securing  the  respect  and  confidence 
of  society,  and  advancing  their  own  worldly  interests.  Thus 
they  seek  to  cover  all  their  unrighteous  transactions  under 
a  profession  of  Christianity.  The  various  religious  bodies, 
re-enforced  by  the  wealth  and  influence  of  these  baptized 
worldlings,  make  a  still  higher  bid  for  popularity  and  patron- 
age. Splendid  churches,  erfibellished  in  the  most  extrav- 
agant manner,  are  erected  on  popular  avenues.  The  wor- 
shipers array  themselves  in  costly  and  fashionable  attire.  A 
high  salary  is  paid  for  a  talented  minister  to  entertain  and 
attract  the  people.  His  sermons  must*  not  touch  popular 
sins,  but  be  made  smooth  and  pleasing  for  fashionable  ears. 
Thus  fashionable  sinners  are  enrolled  on  the  church-records, 
and  fashionable  sins  are  concealed  under  a  pretense  of  god- 
liness. 

Commenting  on  the  present  attitude  of  professed  Chris- 
tians toward  the  world,  a  leading  secular  journal  says:  "In- 
sensibly the  church  has  yielded  to  the  spirit  of  the  age,  and 
adapted  its  forms  of  worship  to  modern  wants."  "All  things, 
indeed,  that  help  to  make  religion  attractive,  the  church  now 
employs  as  its  instruments."  And  a  writer  in  the  New  York 
Independent  speaks  thus  concerning  Methodism  as  it  is:  "The 
line  of  separation  between  the  godly  and  the  irreligious 
fades  out  into  a  kind  of  penumbra,  and  zealous  men  on  both 
sides  are  toiling  to  obliterate  all  difference  between  their 
modes  of  action  and  enjoyment."  "The  popularity  of  relig- 
ion tends  vastly  to  increase  the  number  of  those  who  would 
secure  its  benefits  without  squarely  meeting  its  duties." 

Says  Howard  Crosby:  "The  church  of  God  is  to-day 
courting  the  world.  Its  members  are  trying  to  bring  it 


A   WARNING  REJECTED.  387 


down  to  the  level  of  the  ungodly.  The  ball,  the  theater, 
nude  and  lewd  art,  social  luxuries  with  all  their  loose  mo- 
ralities, are  making  inroads  into  the  sacred  inclosure  of  the 
church;  and  as  a  satisfaction  for  all  this  worldliness,  Chris- 
tians are  making  a  great  deal  of  Lent  and  Easter  and  church 
ornamentation.  It  is  the  old  trick  of  Satan.  The  Jewish 
church  struck  on  that  rock;  the  Romish  church  was  wrecked 
on  the  same;  and  the  Protestant  is  fast  reaching  the  same 
doom." 

In  this  tide  of  worldliness  and  pleasure-seeking,  self-denial 
and  self-sacrifice  for  Christ's  sake  are  almost  wholly  lost. 
"Some  of  the  men  and  women  now  in  active  life  in  our 
churches  were  educated,  when  children,  to  make  sacrifices 
in  order  to  be  able  to  give  or  to  do  something  for  Christ." 
But  "if  funds  are  wanted  now,  .  .  .  nobody  must  be 
called  on  to  give.  Oh,  no!  have  a  fair,  tableaux,  a  mock 
trial,  an  antiquarian  supper,  or  something  to  eat,  anything 
to  amuse  the  people." 

Governor  Washburn,  of  Wisconsin,  in  his  annual  message 
declared  "that  church  fairs,  charitable  raffles,  concert  lotter- 
ies for  charitable  and  other  purposes,  prize  packages,  *  grab- 
bags,'  Sabbath -school  and  other  religious  chances  by  ticket, 
are  nurseries  of  crime,  inasmuch  as  they  promise  something 
for  nothing,  are  games  of  chance,  and  are  really  gambling. 
He  says  that  the  pernicious  spirit  of  gambling  is  fostered, 
encouraged,  and  kept  alive  by  these  agencies  to  a  degree 
little  known  by  good  citizens;  and  that,  but  for  them,  the 
ordinary  laws  against  gambling  would  be  much  less  violated 
and  much  more  easily  enforced.  These  practices,  he  de- 
clares, ought  not  to  be  permitted  any  longer  to  debauch  the 
morals  of  the  young." 

The  spirit  of  worldly  conformity  is  invading  the  churches 
throughout  Christendom.  Robert  Atkins,  in  a  sermon 
preached  in  London,  draws  a  dark  picture  of -the  spiritual 
declension  that  prevails  in  England:  "The  truly  righteous 
are  diminished  from  the  earth,  and  no  man  layeth  it  to 


388  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


heart.  The  professors  of  religion  of  the  present  day,  in 
every  church,  are  lovers  of  the  world,  conformers  to  the 
world,  lovers  of  creature-comfort,  and  aspirers  after  respect- 
ability. They  are  called  to  suffer  with  Christ,  but  they 
shrink  from  even  reproach.  Apostasy,  apostasy,  apostasy,  is 
engraven  on  the  very  front  of  every  church ;  and  did  they 
know  it,  and  did  they  feel  it,  there  might  be  hope;  but,  alas! 
they  cry,  'We  are  rich,  and  increased  in  goods,  and  have 
need  of  nothing.' " 

The  great  sin  charged  against  Babylon  is,  that  she  "  made 
all  nations  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of  her  fornication." 
This  cup  of  intoxication  wrhich  she  presents  to  the  world, 
represents  the  false  doctrines  that  she  has  accepted  as  the 
result  of  her  unlawful  connection  with  the  great  ones  of  the 
earth.  Friendship  with  the  world  corrupts  her  faith,  and 
in  her  turn  she  exerts  a  corrupting  influence  upon  the  world 
by  teaching  doctrines  which  are  opposed  to  the  plainest 
statements  of  Holy  Writ. 

Rome  withheld  the  Bible  from  the  people,  and  required 
all  men  to  accept  her  teachings  in  its  place.  It  was  the 
work  of  the  Reformation  to  restore  to  men  the  Word  of  God; 
but  is  it  not  too  true  that  in  the  churches  of  our  time  men 
are  taught  to  rest  their 'faith  upon  their  creed  and  the  teach- 
ings of  their  church  rather  than  on  the  Scriptures?  Said 
Charles  Beecher,  speaking  of  the  Protestant  churches:  "  They 
shrink  from  any  rude  word  against  creeds  witli  the  sa .ne 
sensitiveness  with  which  those  holy  fathers  would  have 
shrunk  from  a  rude  word  against  the  rising  veneration  for 
saints  and  martyrs  which  they  were  fostering.  .  .  .  The 
Protestant  evangelical  denominations  have  so  tied  up  one 
another's  hands,  and  their  own,  that,  between  them  all,  a 
man  cannot  become  a  preacher  at  all,  anywhere,  without  ac- 
cepting some  book  besides  the  Bible.  .  .  .  There  is  noth- 
ing imaginary  in  the  statement  that  the  creed  power  is  now 
beginning  to  prohibit  the  P>ible  as  really  as  Rome  did, 
though  in  a  subtler  way/' 


A    WARNING  REJECTED.  389 


When  faithful  teachers  expound  the  Word  of  God,  there 
arise  men  of  learning,  ministers  professing  to  understand  the 
Scriptures,  who  denounce  sound  doctrine  as  heresy,  and  thus 
turn  away  inquirers  .after  truth.  Were  it  not  that  the  world 
is  hopelessly  intoxicated  with  the  wine  of  Babylon,  multi- 
tudes would  be  convicted  and  converted  by  the  plain,  cut- 
ting truths  of  the  Word  of  God.  But  religious  faith  appears 
so  confused  and  discordant,  that  the  people  know  not  what 
to  believe  as  truth.  The  sin  of  the  world's  impenitence  lies 
at  the  door  of  the  church. 

The  second  angel's  message  of.  Revelation  14,  was  first 
preached  in  the  summer  of  1844,  and  it  then  had  a  more 
direct  application  to  the  churches  of  the  United  States,  where 
the  warning  of  the  Judgment  had  been  most  widely  pro- 
claimed and  most  generally  rejected,  and  where  the  declen- 
sion in  the  churches  had  been  most  rapid.  But  the  message 
of  the  second  angel  did  not  reach  its  complete  fulfillment  in 
1844.  The  churches  then  experienced  a  moral  fall,  in  con- 
sequence of  their  refusal  of  the  light  of  the  Advent  message; 
but  that  fall  was  not  complete.  As  they  have  continued  to 
reject  the  special  truths  for  this  time,  they  have  fallen  lower 
and  lower.  Not  yet,  however,  can  it  be  said  that  "  Babylon 
is  fallen,  .  .  .  because  she  made  all  nations  drink  of  the 
wine  of  the  wrath  of  her  fornication."  She  has  not  yet 
made  all  nations  do  this.  The  spirit  of  world-conforming 
and  indifference  to  the  testing  truths  for  our  time  exists  and 
has  been  gaining  ground  in  churches  of  the  Protestant  faith 
in  all  the  countries  of  Christendom ;  and  these  churches  are 
included  in  the  solemn  and  terrible  denunciation  of  the  sec- 
ond angel.  But  the  work  of  apostasy  has  not  yet  reached 
its  culmination. 

The  Bible  declares  that  before  the  coming  of  the  Lord, 
Satan  will  work  "with  all  power  and  signs  and  lying  wonders, 
and  with  all  deceivableness  of  unrighteousness;"  and  they 
that  "received  not  the  love  of  the  truth,  that  they  might  be 
saved,"  will  be  left  to  receive  "strong  delusion,  that  they 


890  TV//;    GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

should  believe  a  lie."1  Not  until  this  condition  shall  be 
reached,  and  the  union  of  the  church  with  the  world  shall 
be  fully  accomplished,  throughout  Christendom,  will  the  fall 
of  Babylon  be  complete.  The  change  is  a  progressive  one, 
and  the  perfect  fulfillment  of  Rev.  14:8  is  yet  future. 

Notwithstanding  the  spiritual  darkness,  and  alienation 
from  God,  that  exist  in  the  churches  which  constitute  Baby- 
lon, the  great  body  of  Christ's  true  followers  are  still  to  be 
found  in  their  communion.  There  are  many  of  these  who 
have  never  seen  the  special  truths  for  this  time.  Not  a  few 
are  dissatisfied  with  their  present  condition,  and  are  longing 
for  clearer  light.  They  look  in  vain  for  the  image  of  Christ 
in  the  churches  with  w^hich  they  are  connected.  As  these 
bodies  depart  farther  and  farther  from  the  truth,  and  ally 
themselves  more  closely  with  the  world,  the  difference 
between  the  two  classes  will  widen,  and  it  will  finally  result 
in  separation.  The  time  will  come  when  those  who  love  God 
supremely  can  no  longer  remain  in  connection  with  such  as 
are  ''lovers  of  pleasures  more  than  lovers  of  God;  having  a 
form  of  godliness,  but  denying  the  power  thereof." 

Revelation  18  points  to  the  time  when,  as  the  result 
of  rejecting  the  threefold  warning  of  Rev.  14:6-12,  the 
church  will  have  fully  reached  the  condition  foretold  by  the 
second  angel,  and  the  people  of  God,  still  in  Babylon,  will 
be  called  upon  to  separate  from  her  communion.  This 
message  is  the  last  that  will  ever  be  given  to  the  world;  an^ 
it  will  accomplish  its  work.  When  those  that  "believed  not 
the  truth,  but  had  pleasure  in  unrighteousness,"2  shall  be 
left  to  receive  strong  delusion,  and  to  believe  a  lie,  then  the 
light  of  truth  will  shine  upon  all  whose  hearts  are  open  to 
receive  it,  and  all  the  children  of  the  Lord,  that  remain  in 
Babylon,  will  heed  the  call,  "Come  out  of  her,  my  people."' 

i 2  Thess.  2  :  9-11.  *'2  Tliess.  2  : 12.  3  Kev.  18  : 4. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 


PROPHECIES    FULFILLED. 

WHEN  the  time  passed  at  which  the  Lord's  coming  was 
first  expected, — in  the  spring  of  1844, — those  who  had 
looked  in  faith  for  his  appearing  were  for  a  season  involved 
in  doubt  and  uncertainty.  While  the  world  regarded  them 
as  having  been  utterly  defeated,  and  proved  to  have  been 
cherishing  a  delusion,  their  source  of  consolation  was  still 
the  Word  of  God.  Many  continued  to  search  the  Scriptures, 
examining  anew  the  evidences  of  their  faith,  and  carefully 
studying  the  prophecies  to  obtain  further  light.  The  Bible 
testimony  in  support  of  their  position  seemed  clear  and  con- 
clusive. Signs  which  could  not  be  mistaken  pointed  to  the 
coming  of  Christ  as  near.  The  special  blessing  of  the  Lord, 
both  in  the  conversion  of  sinners  and  the  revival  of  spiritual 
life  among  Christians,  had  testified  that  the  message  was  of 
Heaven.  And  though  the  believers  could  not  explain  their 
disappointment,  they  felt  assured  that  God  had  led  them  in 
their  past  experience. 

Interwoven  with  prophecies  which  they  had  regarded  as 
applying  to  the  time  of  the  second  advent,  was  instruction 
specially  adapted  to  their  state  of  uncertainty  and  suspense, 
and  encouraging  them  to  wrait  patiently,  in  the  faith  that 
what  was  now  dark  to  their  understanding  would  in  due 
time  be  made  plain. 

Among  these  prophecies  was  that  of  Hab.  2 : 1-4 :  "I  will 
stand  upon  my  watch,  and  set  me  upon  the  tower,  and  will 
watch  to  see  what  he  will  say  unto  me,  and  what  I  shall 
answer  when  I  am  reproved.  And  the  Lord  answered  me, 
and  said,  Write  the  vision,  and  make  it  plain  upon  tables, 

(391) 


392  Till':  t7 A' AM  T   ( 'O X 77.' ()  J  ~KR8 Y. 


tliat  he  may  run  that  readeth.it.  For  the  vision  is  yet  for 
an  appointed  time,  but  at  the  end  it  shall  speak,  and  not 
lie:  though  it  tarry,  wait  for  it;  because  it  will  surely  come, 
it  will  not  tarry.  Behold,  his  soul  which  is  lifted  up  is  not 
upright  in  him;  but  the  just  shall  live  by  his  faith/' 

As  early  as  1842,  the  direction  given  in  this  prophecy,  to 
"  write  the  vision,  and  make  it  plain  upon  tables,  that  he 
may  run  that  readeth  it,"  had  suggested  to  Charles  Fitch 
the  preparation  of  a  prophetic  chart  to  illustrate  the  visions 
of  Daniel  and  the  Revelation.  The  publication  of  this 
chart  was  regarded  as  a  fulfillment  of  the  command  given 
by  Habakkuk.  No  one,  however,  then  noticed  that  an 
apparent  delay  in  the  accomplishment  of  the  vision — a 
tarrying  time — is  presented  in  the  same  -prophecy.  After 
the  disappointment,  this  scripture  appeared  very  signifi- 
cant: "The  vision  is  yet  for  an  appointed  time,  but  at 
the  end  it  shall  speak,  and  not  lie:  though  it  tarry,  wait  for 
it;  because  it  will  surely  come,  it  will  not  tarry.  .  .  . 
The  just  shall  live  by  his  faith" 

A  portion  of  Ezekiel's  prophecy  also  was  a  source  of 
strength  and  comfort  to  believers:  "And  the  word  of  the 
Lord  came  unto  me,  saying,  Son  of  man,  what  is  that  prov- 
erb that  ye  have  in  the  land  of  Israel,  saying,  The  days 
are  prolonged,  and  every  vision  faileth?  Tell  them  1  here- 
fore,  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God:  .  .  .  The  days  are  at 
hand,  and  the  effect  of  every  vision.  ...  I  will  speak,  ami 
the  word  that  I  shall  speak  shall  come  to  pass;  it  shall  be 
no  more  prolonged."  "They  of  the  house  of  Israel  say,  The 
vision  that  he  seeth  is  for  many  days  to  come,  and  he  proph- 
esieth  of  the  times  that  are  far  off.  Therefore  say  unto 
them,  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God:  There  shall  none  of  my 
words  be  prolonged  any  more,  but  the  word  which  I  have 
spoken  shall  be  done."1 

The  waiting  ones  rejoiced,  believing  that  He  who  knows 
the  end  from  the  beginning  had  looked  down  through  the 
ages,  and,  foreseeing  their  disappointment,  had  given  them 

»Eze.  12:21-25,  27,  28. 


393 


words  of  cguragiB  and  hope.  Had  it  not  been  for  such  por- 
tions of  Scripture,  admonishing  them  to  wait  with  patience, 
and  to  hold  fast  their  confidence  in  God's  Word,  their  faith 
would  have  failed  in  that  trying  hour. 

The  parable  of  the  ten  virgins  of  Matthew  25,  also  illus- 
trates the  experience  of  the  Adventist  people.  In  Matthew 
24,  in  answer  to  the  question  of  his  disciples  concerning  the 
sign  of  his  coming  and  of  the  end  of  the  world,  Christ  had 
pointed  out  some  of  the  most  important  events  in  the  his- 
tory of  the 'wo  rid  and  of  the  church  from  his  first  to  his 
second  advent;  namely,  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the 
great  tribulation  of  the  church  under  the  pagan  and  papal 
persecutions,  the  darkening  of  the  sun  and  moon,  and  the 
falling  of  the  stars.  After  this  he  spoke  of  his  coining  in 
his  kingdom,  and  related  the  parable  describing  the  two 
classes  of  servants  who  look  for  his  appearing.  Chapter  25 
opens  with  the  words, "  Then  shall  the  kingdom  of  Heaven 
be  likened  unto  ten  virgins."  Here  is  brought  to  view  the 
church  living  in  the  last  days,  the  same  that  is  pointed  out 
in  the  close  of  chapter  24.  In  this  parable  their  experience 
is  illustrated  by  the  incidents  of  an  Eastern  marriage. 

"Then  shall  the  kingdom  of  Heaven  be  likened  unto  ten 
virgins,  which  took  their  lamps,  and  went  forth  to  meet  the 
bridegroom.  And  five  of  them  were  wise,  and  five  were 
foolish.  They  that  were  foolish  took  their  lamps,  and  took 
no  oil  with  them;  but  the  wise  took  oil  in  their  vessels  with 
their  lamps.  While  the  bridegroom  tarried,  they  all  slum- 
bered and  slept.  And  at  midnight  there  was  a  cry  made, 
Behold,  the  bridegroom  cometh;  go  ye  out  to  meet  him," 

The  coming  of  Christ,  as  announced  by  the  first  angel's 
message,  was  understood  to  be  represented  by  the  coming  of 
the  bridegroom.  The  widespread  reformation  under  the 
proclamation  of  his  soon  coming,  answered  to  the  going 
forth  of  the  virgins.  In  this  parable,  as  in  that  of  Matthew 
24,  two  classes  are  represented.  All  had  taken  their  lamps, 
the  Bible,  and  by  its  light  had  gone  forth  to  meet  the 


394  THE    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Bridegroom.  But  while  "they  that  were  foolish  took  their 
lamps,  and  took  no  oil  with  them/'  "the  wise  took  oil  in 
their  vessels  with  their  lamps."  The  latter  class  had  re- 
ceived the  grace  of  God,  the  regenerating,  enlightening 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  renders  his  Word  a  lamp 
to  the  feet  and  a  light  to  the  path.  In  the  fear  of  God  they 
had  studied  the  Scriptures  to  learn  the  trulli,  and  had  ear- 
nestly sought  for  purity  of  heart  and  life.  These  had  a 
personal  experience,  a  faith  in  God  and  in  his  Word,  which 
could  not  be  overthrown  by  disappointment  and  delay. 
Others  "took  their  lamps,  and  took  no  oil  with  them." 
They  had  moved  from  impulse.  Their .  fears  had  been 
excited  by  the  solemn  message,  but  they  had  depended  upon 
the  faith  of  their -brethren,  satisfied  with  the  flickering  light 
of  good  emotions,  without  a  thorough  understanding  of  the 
truth,  or  a  genuine  work  of  grace  in  the  heart.  These  had 
gone  forth  to  meet  the  Lord,  full  of  hope  in  the  prospect  of 
immediate  reward;  but  they  were  not  prepared  for  delay 
and  disappointment.  When  trials  came,  their  faith  failed, 
and  their  lights  burned  dim. 

"  While  the  bridegroom  tarried,  they  all  slumbered  and 
slept."  By  the  tarrying  of  the  bridegroom  is  represented 
the  passing  of  the  time  when  the^  Lord  was  expected,  the 
disappointment,  and  the  seeming  delay.  In  this  time  of 
uncertainty,  the  interest  of  the  superficial  and  half-hearted 
soon  began  to  waver,  and  their  efforts  to  relax;  but  those 
whose  faith  was  based  on  a  personal  knowledge  of  the  Bible 
had  a  rock  beneath  their  feet,  which  the  waves  of  disap- 
pointment could  not  wash  away.  ''They  all  slumbered  and 
slept;"  one  class  in  unconcern  and  abandonment  of  their 
faith,  the  other  class  patiently  waiting  till  clearer  light 
should  be  given.  Yet  in  the  night  of  trial  the  latter  seemed 
to  lose,  to  some  extent,  their  /eal  and  devotion.  The  half- 
hearted and  superficial  could  no  longer  lean  upon  the  faith 
of  their  brethren.  Each  must  stand  or  fall  for  himself. 

About  this  time,  fanaticism  began  to  appear.    Some  who 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  395 


had  professed  to  be  zealous  believers  in  the  message,  ivjected 
the  Word  of  God  as  the  one  infallible  guide,  and,  claiming 
to  be  led  by  the  Spirit,  gave  themselves  up  to  the  control  of 
their  own  feelings,  impressions,  and  imaginations.  There 
were  some  who  manifested  a  blind  and  bigoted  zeal,  de- 
nouncing all  who  would  not  sanction  their  course.  Their 
fanatical  ideas  and  exercises* met  with  no  sympathy  from 
the  great  body  of  Adventists;  yet  they  served  to  bring 
reproach  upon  the  cause  of  truth. 

Satan  was  seeking  by  this  means  to  oppose  and  destroy 
the  work  of  God.  The  people  had  been  greatly  stirred  by 
the  Advent  movement,  thousands  of  sinners  had  been  con- 
verted, and  faithful  men  were  giving  themselves  to  the  work 
of  proclaiming  the  truth,  even  in  the  tarrying  time.  The 
prince  of  evil  was  losing  his  subjects ;  and  in  order  to  bring 
reproach  upon  the  cause  of  God,  he  sought  to  deceive  some 
who  professed  the  faith,  and  to  drive  them  to  extremes. 
Then  his  agents  stood  ready  to  seize  upon  every  error,  every 
failure,  every  unbecoming  act,  and  hold  it  up  before  the 
people  in  the  most  exaggerated  light,  to  render  Adventists 
and  their  faith  odious.  Tims  the  greater  the  number  whom 
he  could  crowd  in  to  make  a  profession  of  faith  in  the  second 
advent  while  his  power  controlled  their  hearts,  the  greater 
advantage  would  he  gain  by  calling  attention  to  them  as 
representatives  of  the  whole  body  of  believers. 

Satan  is  " the  accuser  of  the  brethren,"  and  it  is  his  spirit 
that  inspires  men  to  watch  for  the  errors  and  defects  of 
the  Lord's  people,  and  to  hold  them  up  to  notice,  while  their 
good  deeds  are  passed  by  without  a  mention.  He  is  always 
active  when  God  is  at  work  for  the  salvation  of  souls.  When 
the  sons  of  God  come  to  present  themselves  before  the  Lord, 
Satan  comes  also  among  them.  In  every  revival  he  is  ready 
to  bring  in  those  who  are  unsanctified  in  heart  and  unbal- 
anced in  mind.  When  these  have  accepted  some  points  of 
truth,  and  gained  a  place  with  believers,  he  works  through 
them  to  introduce  theories  that  will  deceive  the  unwary. 


396  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


No  man  is  proved  to  be  a  true  Christian  because  lie  is  found 
in  company  with  the  children  of  God,  even  in  the  house  ol 
worship  and  around  the  table  of  the  Lord.  Satan  is  fre- 
quently there  upon  the  most  solemn  occasions,  in  the  form 
of  those  whom  he  can  use  as  his  agents. 

The  prince  of  evil  contests  every  inch  of  ground  over 
which  God's  people  advance  in  their  journey  toward  the 
heavenly  city.  In  all  the  history  of  the  church,  no  reforma- 
tion has  been  carried  forward  without  encountering  serious 
obstacles.  Thus  it  was  in  Paul's  day.  Wherever  the  apostle 
raised  up  a  church,  there  were  some  who  professed  to  receive 
the  faith,  but  who  brought  in  heresies,  that,  if  received, 
would  eventually  crowd  out  the  love  of  the  truth.  Luther 
also  suffered  great  perplexity  and  distress  from  the  course 
of  fanatical  persons  who  claimed  that  God  had  spoken 
directly  through  them,  and  who  therefore  set  their  own 
ideas  and  opinions  above  the  testimony  of  the  Script- 
ures. Many  who  were  lacking  in  faith  and  experience,  but 
who  had  considerable  self-sufficiency,  and  who  loved  to 
hear  and  tell  some  new  thing,  were  beguiled  by  the  preten- 
sions of  the  new  teachers,  and  they  joined  the  agents  of 
Satan  in  their  work  of  tearing  down  what  God  had  moved 
Luther  to  build  up.  And  the  Wesleys,  and  others  who 
blessed  the  world  by  their  influence  and  their  faith,  encoun- 
tered at  every  step  the  wiles  of  Satan  in  pushing  overzeal- 
ous,  unbalanced,  and  unsanctified  ones  into  fanaticism  of 
every  grade. 

William  Miller  had  no  sympathy  with  those  influences 
that  led  to  fanaticism.  He  declared,  with  Luther,  that 
every  spirit  should  be  tested  by  the  Word  of  God.  "The 
devil,"  said  Miller, "  has  great  power  over  the  minds  of  some 
at  the  present  day.  And  how  shall  we  know  what  manner  of 
spirit  they  are  of?  The  Bible  answers:  'By  their  fruits 
ye  shall  know  them.'"  "There  are  many  spirits  gone  out 
into  the  world;  and  we  are  commanded  to  try  the  spirits. 
The  spirit  that  does  not  cause  us  to  live  soberly,  righteously, 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  397 


mid  godly,  in  this  present  world,  is  not  the  Spirit  of  Christ. 
I  am  more  and  more  convinced  that  Satan  has  much  to  do 
in  these  wild  movements."  "Many  among  us,  who  pre- 
tend to  be  wholly  sanctified,  are  following  the  traditions 
of  men,  and  apparently  are  as  ignorant  of  truth  as  others 
who  make  no  such  pretensions."  "  The  spirit  of  error  will 
lead  us  from  the  truth;  and  the  Spirit  of  God'  will  lead 
us  into  truth.  But,  say  you,  a  man  may  be  in  error, 
and  think  he  has  the  truth.  What  then?  We  answer,  The 
Spirit  and  Word  agree.  If  a  man  judges  himself  by  the 
Word  of  God,  and  finds  a  perfect  .harmony  through  the 
whole  Word,  then  he  must  believe  he  has  the  truth;  but  if 
he  finds  the  spirit  by  which  he  is  led  does  not  harmonize 
with  the  whole  tenor  of  God's  law  or  book,  then  let  him 
walk  carefully,  lest  he  be  caught  in  the  snare  of  the  devil." 
"  I  have  often  obtained  more  evidence  of  inward  piety  from 
a  kindling  eye,  a  wet  cheek,  and  a  choked  utterance,  than 
from  all  the  noise  in  Christendom." 

In  the  days  of  the  Reformation  its  enemies  charged  all 
the  evils  of  fanaticism  upon  the  very  ones  who  were  labor- 
ing most  earnestly  against  it.  A  similar  course  was  pursued 
by  the  opposers  of  the  Advent  movement.  And  riot  con- 
tent with  misrepresenting  and  exaggerating  the  errors  of 
extremists  and  fanatics,  they  circulated  unfavorable  reports 
that  had  not  the  slightest  semblance  of  truth.  These  per- 
sons were  actuated  by  prejudice  and  hatred.  Their  peace 
was  disturbed  by  the  proclamation  of  Christ  at  the  door. 
They  feared  it  might  be  true,  yet  hoped  it  was  not,  and  this 
was  the  secret  of  their  warfare  against  Adventists  and  their 
faith. 

The  fact  that  a  few  fanatics  worked  their  way  into  the 
ranks  of  Adventists  is  no  more  a  reason  to  decide  that  the 
movement  was  riot  of  God,  than  was  the  presence  of  fanat- 
ics and  deceivers  in  the  church  in  Paul's  or  Luther's  day 
a  sufficient  excuse  for  condemning  their  work.  Let  the 
V>eople  of  God  arouse  out  of  sleep,  and  begin  in  earnest  the 


398  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


work  of  repentance  and  reformation,  let  them  search  the 
Scriptures  to  learn  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  let  them  make 
nn  entire  consecration  to  God,  and  evidence  will  not  be 
wanting  that  Satan  is  still  active  and  vigilant.  With  all 
possible  deception  he  will  manifest  his  power,  calling  to  his 
aid  all  the  fallen  angels  of  his  realm. 

It  was  not  the  proclamation  of  the  second  advent  that 
created  fanaticism  and  division.  These  appeared  in  the 
summer  of  1844,  when  Adventists  were  in  a  state  of  doubt 
and  perplexity  concerning  their  real  position.  The  preach- 
ing of  the  first  angel's  message  and  of  the  "midnight  cry" 
tended  directly  to  repress  fanaticism  and  dissension.  Those 
who  participated  in  these  solemn  movements  were  in  har- 
mony; their  hearts  were  filled  with  love  for  one  another, 
and  for  Jesus,  whom  they  expected  soon  to  see.  The  one 
faith,  the  one  blessed  hope,  lifted  them  above  the  control  of 
any  human  influence,  and  proved  a  shield  against  the 
assaults  of  Satan. 

"While  the  bridegroom  tarried,  they  all  slumbered  and 
slept.  And  at  midnight  there  was  a  cry  made,  Behold,  the 
bridegroom  cometh;  go  ye  out  to  meet  him.  Then  all  those 
virgins  arose,  and  trimmed  their  lamps."1  In  the  summer 
of  1844,  midway  between  the  time  when  it  had  been  first 
thought  that  the  2300  days  would  end,  and  the  autumn  of 
the  same  year,  to  which  it  was  afterward  found  that  they 
extended,  the  message  was  proclaimed,  in  the  very  words  of 
Scripture,  "Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh!" 

That  which  led  to  this  movement  was  the  discovery  that 
the  decree  of  Artaxerxes  for  the  restoration  of  Jerusalem, 
which  formed  the  starting-point  for  the  period  of  the  2300 
days,  went  into  effect  in  the  autumn  of  the  year  B.  c.  457, 
and  not  at  the  beginning  of  the  year,  as  had  been  formerly 
believed.  Reckoning  from  the  autumn  of  457,  the  2300 
years  terminate  in  the  autumti  of  1844.' 

Arguments    drawn    from    the    Old-Testament    typos    also 

-  Matt.  25  :f>-7.     2Sec  diagram,  opposite  p.  328;  also  Appendix,  Note  3. 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  399 


pointed  to  the  autumn  as  the  time  when  the  event  repre- 
sented by  the  "cleansing  of  the  sanctuary"  must  take 
place.  This  was  made  very  clear  as  attention  was  given  to 
the  manner  in  which  the  types  relating  to  the  first  advent 
of  Christ  had  been  fulfilled. 

The  slaying  of  the  passover  lamb  was  a  shadow  of  the 
death  of  Christ.  Says  Paul,  "Christ  our  passover  is  sacri- 
ficed for  us."1  The  sheaf  of  first-fruits,  which  at  the  time  of 
the  Passover  was  waved  before  the  Lord,  was  typical  of  the 
resurrection  of  Christ.  Paul  says,  in  speaking  of  the  resur- 
rection of  the  Lord,  and  of  all  his  people,  "Christ  the  first- 
fruits;  afterward  they  that  are  Christ's  at  his  coming."2 
Like  the  wave-sheaf,  which  was  the  first  ripe  grain  gathered 
before  the  harvest,  Christ  is  the  first-fruits  of  that  immortal 
harvest  of  redeemed  ones  that  at  the  future  resurrection 
shall  be  gathered  into  the  garner  of  God. 

These  types  were  fulfilled,  not  only  as  to  the  event,  but  as 
to  the  *time.  On  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  first  Jewish 
month,  the  very  day  and  month  on  which,  for  fifteen  long 
centuries,  the  passover  lamb  had  been  slain,  Christ,  having 
eaten  the  passover  with  his  disciples,  instituted  that  feast 
which  was  to  commemorate  his  own  death  as  "  the  Lamb  of 
God,  which  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world."  That  same 
night  he  was  taken  by  wicked  hands,  to  be  crucified  and 
slain.  And  as  the  antitype  of  the  wave-sheaf,  our  Lord  was 
raised  from  the  dead  on  the  third  day,  "  the  first-fruits  of 
them  that  slept,"3  a  sample  of  all  the  resurrected  just,  whose 
"  vile  body  "  shall  be  changed,  and  "  fashioned  like  unto  his 
glorious  body."4 

In  like  manner,  the  types  which  relate  to  the  second 
advent  must  be  fulfilled  at  the  time  pointed  out  in  the 
symbolic  service.  Under  the  Mosaic  system,  the  cleansing 
of  the  sanctuary,  or  the  great  day  of  atonement,  occurred  on 
the  tenth  day  of  the  seventh  Jewish  month,5  when  the  high 
priest,  having  made  an  atonement  for  all  Israel,  and  thus 

1 1  Cor.  5.7.  M  Cor.  15.:  23.  '  i  Cor.  15  :  20. 

*Phil.  3:21,  5  Lev.  16  :  29-34. 


400  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


removed  their  sins  from  the  sanctuary,  came  forth  and 
blessed  the  people.  So  it  was  believed  that  Christ,  our 
great  High  Priest,  would  appear  to  purify  the  earth  by  the 
destruction  of  sin  and  sinners,  and  to  bless  his  waiting  peo- 
ple with  immortality.  The  tenth  day  of  the  seventh  month, 
the  great  day  of  atonement,  the  time  of  the  cleansing  of  the 
sanctuary,  which  in  the  year  1844  fell  upon  the  22d  of 
October,  was  regarded  as  the  time  of  the  Lord's  coming. 
This  was  in  harmony  with  the  proofs  already  presented  that 
the  2300  days  would  terminate  in  the  autumn,  and  the  con- 
clusion seemed  irresistible. 

In  the  parable  of  Matthew  25  the  time  of  waiting  and 
slumber  is  followed  by  the  coming  of  the  bridegroom.  This 
was  in  accordance  with  the  arguments  just  presented,  both 
from  prophecy  and  from  the  types.  They  carried  strong 
conviction  of  their  truthfulness;  and  the  "midnight  cry" 
was  heralded  by  thousands  of  believers. 

Like"  a  tidal  wave  the  movement  swept  over  the  land. 
From  city  to  city,  from  village  to  village,  and  into  remote 
country  places  it  went,  until  the  waiting  people  of  God  were 
fully  aroused.  Fanaticism  disappeared  before  this  procla- 
mation, like  early  frost  before  the  rising  sun.  Believers  saw 
their  doubt  and  perplexity  removed,  and  hope  and  courage 
animated  their  hearts.  The  work  was  free  from  those  ex- 
tremes which  are  ever  manifested  when  there  is  human 
excitement  without  the  controlling  influence  of  the  Word 
and  Spirit  of  God.  It  was  similar  in  character  to  those 
seasons  of  humiliation  and  returning  unto  .the  Lord  which 
among  ancient  Israel  followed  messages  of  reproof  from  his 
servants.  It  bore  the  characteristics  that  mark  the  work 
of  God  in  every  age.  There  was  little  ecstatic  joy,  but  rather 
deep  searching  of  heart,  confession  of  sin,  and  forsaking  of 
the  world.  A  preparation  to  meel  the  Lord  was  the  burden 
of  agonizing  spirits.  There  was  p.-rsevrring  prayer,  and  uii- 
ivserved  conseeration  to  <  Jod. 

Said  Miller,  in  describing  that  work:  "There  is  no  great 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  401 


expression  of  joy;  that  is,  as  it  were,  suppressed  for  a  future 
occasion,  when  all  Heaven  and  earth  will  rejoice  together 
with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory.  There  is  no  .shout- 
ing; that,  too,  is  reserved  for  the  shout  from  Heaven.  The 
singers  are  silent;  they  are  waiting  to  join  the  angelic  hosts, 
the  choir  from  Heaven."  "There  is  no  clashing  of  senti- 
ments; all  are  of  one  heart  and  of  one  mind."  Another  who 
participated  in  the  movement  testified:  "It  has  produced 
everywhere  the  most  deep  searching  of  heart  and  humilia- 
tion of  soul.'  ...  It  caused  a  weaning  of  affections  from 
the  things  of  this  world,  a  healing  of  controversies  and 
animosities,  a  confession  of  wrongs,  a  breaking  down  before 
God,  and  penitent,  broken-hearted  supplications  to  him  for 
pardon  and  acceptance.  It  caused  self-abasement  and  pros- 
tration of  soul,  such  as  we  never  before  witnessed.  As  the 
Lord  commanded  by  the  prophet  Joel,  when  the  great  day 
of  God  should  be  at  hand,  it  produced  a  rending  of  hearts 
and  not  of  garments,  and  a  turning  unto  the  Lord  with 
fasting,  and  weeping,  and  mourning.  As  God  said  by  Zech- 
ariah,-a  spirit  of  grace  and  of  supplication  was  poured  out 
upon  his  children;  they  looked  to  Him  whom  they  had 
pierced,  there  was  great  mourning  in  the  land,  .  .  .  and 
those  who  were  looking  for  the  Lord  afflicted  their  souls 
before  him." 

Of  all  the  great  religious  movements  since  the  days  of  the 
apostles,  none  have  been  more  free  from  human  imperfec- 
tion and  the  wiles  of  Satan  than  was  that  of  the  autumn 
of  1844.  Even  now,  after  the  lapse  of  nearly  half  a  century, 
all  who  shared  in  that  movement  and  who  have  stood  firm 
upon  the  platform  of  truth,  still  feel  the  holy  influence  of 
that  blessed  work,  and  bear  witness  that  it  was  of  God. 

At  the  call,  u  The  Bridegroom  cometh ;  go  ye  out  to  meet 
him,"  the  waiting  ones  "arose  and  trimmed  their  lamps;" 
they  studied  the  Word  of  God  with  an  intensity  of  interest 
before  unknown.  Angels  were  sent  from  Heaven  to  arouse 
those  who  had  become  discouraged,  and  prepare  them  to 

30 


402  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


receive  the  message.  The  work  did  not  stand  in  the  wis- 
dom and  learning  of  men,  but  in  the  power  of  God.  It  was 
not  the  most  talented,  but  the  most  humble  and  devoted, 
who  were  the  first  to  hear  and  obey  the  call.  Farmers  left 
their  crops  standing  in  the  fields,  mechanics  laid  down  their 
tools,  and  with  tears  and  rejoicing  went  out  to  give  the 
vvarning.  Those  who  had  formerly  led  in  the  cause  were 
among  the  last  to  join  in  this  movement.  The  churches  in 
general  closed  their  doors  against  this  message,  and  a  lar^c 
company  of  those  who  received  it  withdrew  from  their  con- 
nection. In  the  providence  of  God,  this  proclamation  united 
with  the  second  angel's  message,  and  gave  power  to  that 
work. 

The  message,  ".Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh ! "  was  not 
so  much  a  matter  of  argument,  though  the  Scripture  proof 
was  clear  and  conclusive.  There  went  with  it  an  impelling 
power  that  moved  the  soul.  There  was  no  doubt,  no  ques- 
tioning. Upon  the  occasion  of  Christ's  triumphal  entry  into 
Jerusalem,  the  people  who  were  assembled  from  all  parts  oif 
the  land  to  keep  the  feast,  flocked  to  the  Mount  of  Olives, 
and  as  they  joined  the  throng  that  were  escorting  Jesus, 
they  caught  the  inspiration  of  the  hour  and  helped  to  swell 
the  shout,  "Blessed  is  He  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord!"1  In  like  manner  did  unbelievers  who  flocked  to 
the  Adventist  meetings — some  from  curiosity,  some  merely 
to  ridicule — feel  the  convincing  power  attending  the  mes- 
sage, "Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh!" 

At  that  time  there  was  faith  that  brought  answers  to 
prayer, — faith  that  had  respect  to  the  recompense  of  reward. 
Like  showers  of  rain  upon  the  thirsty  earth,  the  Spirit  of 
grace  descended  upon  the  earnest  seekers.  Those  who  ex- 
pected soon  to  stand  face  to  face  with  their  Redeemer  felt  a 
solemn  joy  that  was  unutterable.  The  softening,  subduing 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  melted  the  heart,  as  his  blessing 
was  bestowed  in  rich  measure  upon  the  faithful,  believing 
ones. 

1  Matt.  21:9. 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  403 


Carefully  and  solemnly  those  who  received  the  message 
came  up  to  the  time  when  they  hoped  to  meet  their  Lord. 
Every  morning  they  felt  that  it  was  their  first  duty  to  secure 
the  evidence  of  their  acceptance  with  God.  Their  hearts 
were  closely  united,  and  they  prayed  much  with  and  for 
one  another.  They  often  met  together  in  secluded  places  to 
commune  with  God,  and  the  voice  of  intercession  ascended 
to  Heaven  from  the  fields  and  groves.  The  assurance  of  the 
Saviour's  approval  was  more  necessary  to  them  than  their 
daily  food,  and  if  a  cloud  darkened  their  minds,  they  did 
not  rest  until  it  was  swept  away.  As  they  felt  the  witness 
of  pardoning  grace,  they  longed  to  behold  Him  whom  their 
souls  loved. 

But  again  they  were  destined  to  disappointment.  The 
time  of  expectation  passed,  and  their  Saviour  did  not  appear. 
With  unwavering  confidence  they  had  looked  forward  to  his 
coining,  and  now  they  felt  as  did  Mary,  when,  coming  to 
the  Saviour's  tomb  and  finding  it  empty,  she  exclaimed  with 
weeping,  "They  have  taken  away  my  Lord,  and  I  know 
not  where  they  have  laid  him."1 

A  feeling  of  awe,  a  fear  that  the  message  might  be  true, 
had  for  a  time  served  as  a  restraint  upon  the  unbelieving 
world.  After  the  passing  of  the  time,  this  did  not  at  once 
disappear;  at  first  they  dared  not  triumph  over  the  disap- 
pointed ones;  but  as  no  tokens  of  God's  wrath  were  seen, 
they  recovered  from  their  fears,  and  resumed  their  reproach 
and  ridicule.  A  large  class  who  had  professed  to  .believe  in 
the  Lord's  soon  coming,  renounced  their  faith.  Some  who 
had  been  very  confident  were  so  deeply  wounded  in  their 
pride  that  they  felt  like  fleeing  from  the  wrorld.  Like  Jonah, 
they  complained  of  God,  and  chose  death  rather  than  life. 
Those  who  had  based  their  faith  upon  the  opinions  of  others, 
and  not  upon  the  Word  of  God,  were  now  as  ready  again  to 
change  their  views.  The  scoffers  won  the  weak  and  cow- 
ardly to  their  ranks,  and  all  these  united  in  declaring  that 
there  could  be  no  more  fears  or  expectations  now.  The 

1  John  20: 13. 


404  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


time  had  passed,  the  Lord  had  not  come,  and  the  world 
might  remain  the  same  for  thousands  of  years. 

The  earnest,  sincere  believers  had  given  up  all  for  Christ, 
and  had  shared  his  presence  a§  never  before.  They  had,  as 
they  believed,  given  their  last  warning  to  the  world,  and, 
expecting  soon  to  be  received  into  the  society  of  their  divine 
Master  and  the  heavenly  angels,  they  had,  to  a  great  extent, 
withdrawn  from  the  society  of  those  who  did  not  receive  the 
message.  AYith  intense  desire  they  had  prayed,  "Come, 
Lord  Jesus,  and  come  quickly."  But  he  had  not  come.  And 
now  to  take  up  again  the  heavy  burden  of  life's  cares  and 
perplexities,  and  to  endure  the  taunts  and  sneers  of  a  scoff- 
ing world,  was  a  terrible  trial  of  faith  and  patience. 

Yet  this  disappointment  was  not  so  great  as  was  that 
experienced  by  the  disciples  at  the  time  of  Christ's  first 
advent.  When  Jesus  rode  triumphantly  into  Jerusalem, 
his  followers  believed  that  he  was  about  to  ascend  the  throne 
of  David,  and  deliver  Israel  from  her  oppressors.  With 
high  hopes  and  joyful  anticipations  they  vied  with  one 
another  in  showing  honor  to  their  King.  Many  spread 
their  outer  garments  as  a  carpet  in  his  path,  or  strewed 
before  him  the  leafy  branches  of  the  palm.  In  their  enthu- 
siastic joy  they  united  in  the  glad  acclaim,  "  Hosanna  to  the 
Son  of  David ! "  When  the  Pharisees,  disturbed  and  angered 
by  this  outburst  of  rejoicing,  wished  Jesus  to  rebuke  his  dis- 
ciples, he  replied,  "If  these  should  hold  their  peace,  the 
stones  would  immediately  cry  out."1  Prophecy  must  IK- 
fulfilled.  The  disciples  were  accomplishing  the  purpose  of 
God ;  yet  they  were  doomed  to  a  bitter  disappointment.  But 
a  few  days  had  passed  ere  they  witnessed  the  Saviour's 
agonizing  death,  and  laid  him  in  the  tomb.  Their  expecta- 
tions had  not  been  realized  in  a  single  particular,  and  their 
hopes  died  with  Jesus.  Not  till  their  Lord  had  come  forth 
triumphant  from  the  grave  could  they  perceive  that  all  had 
been  foretold  by  prophecy,  and  "that  Christ  must  needs 
have  suffered,  and  risen  again  from  the  dead." <J 

1  Luke  19:  40.  2  Acts  17:  3, 


PR.OPBE01ES  FULFILLED.  405 


Five  hundred  years  before,  the  Lord  had  declared  by  the 
prophet  Zechariah,  "Rejoice  greatly,  O  daughter  of  Zion; 
shout,  O  daughter  of  Jerusalem.  Behold,  thy  King  cometh 
unto  thee.  He  is  just,  and  having  salvation;  lowly,  and 
riding  upon  an  ass,  and  upon  a  colt  the  foal  of  an  ass." l 
Had  the  disciples  realized  that  Christ  was  going  to  judgment 
and  to  death,  they  could  not  have  fulfilled  this  prophecy. 

In  like  manner,  Miller  and  his  associates  fulfilled  proph- 
ecy, and  gave  a  message  which  inspiration  had  foretold 
should  be  given  to  the  world,  but  which  they  could  not 
have  given  had  they  fully  understood  the  prophecies  point- 
ing out  their  disappointment,  and  presenting  another  mes- 
sage to  be  preached  to  all  nations  before  the  Lord  should 
come.  The  first  and  second  angels'  messages  were  given 
at  the  right  time,  and  accomplished  the  work  which  God 
designed  to  accomplish  by  them. 

The  world  had  been  looking  on,  expecting  that  if  the 
time  passed  and  Christ  did  not  appear,  the  whole  system  of 
Adventism  would  be  given  up.  But  while  many,  under 
strong  temptation,  yielded  their  faith,  there  were  some  who 
stood  firm.  The  fruits  of  the  Advent  movement,  the  spirit 
of  humility  and  heart-searching,  of  renouncing  of  the  world, 
and  reformation  of  life,  which  had  attended  the  work,  testi- 
fied that  it  was  of  God.  They  dared  not  deny  that  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  had  witnessed  to  the  preaching  of 
the  second  advent,  and  they  could  detect  no  error  in  their 
reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods.  The  ablest  of  their 
opponents  had  not  succeeded  in  overthrowing  their  system 
of  prophetic  interpretation.  They  could  not  consent,  with- 
out. Bible  evidence,  to  renounce  positions  which  had  been 
reached' through  earnest,  prayerful  study  of  the  Scriptures, 
by  minds  enlightened  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  hearts 
burning  with  its  living  power;  positions  which  had  with- 
stood the  most  searching  criticisms  and  the  most  bitter 
opposition  of  popular  religious  teachers  and  worldly-wise 
men,  and  which  had  stood  firm  against  the  combined  forces 

1  Zech.  9  : 9. 


406  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

of  learning  and  eloquence,  and  the  taunts  and  revilings 
alike  of  the  honorable  and  the  base. 

True,  there  had  been  a  failure  as  to  the  expected  event, 
but  even  this  could  not  shake  their  faith  in  the  Word  of 
God.  When  Jonah  proclaimed  in  the  streets  of  Nineveh 
that  within  forty  days  the  city  would  be  overthrown,  the 
Lord  accepted  the  humiliation  of  the  Ninevites,  and  extended 
their  period  of  probation;  yet  the  message  of  Jonah  was 
sent  of  God,  and  Nineveh  was  tested  according  to  his  will. 
Adventists  believed  that  in  like  manner  God  had  led  them 
to  give  the  warning  of  the  Judgment.  "  It  has/'  they  de- 
clared, "tested  the  hearts  of  all  who  heard  it,  and  awakened 
a  love  for  the  Lord's  appearing;  or  it  has  called  forth  a 
hatred,  more  or  less  perceivable,  but  known  to  God,  of  his 
coming.  It  has  drawn  a  line,  so  that  those  who  will  examine 
their  own  hearts,  may  know  on  which  side  of  it  they  would 
have  been  found,  had  the  Lord  then  come;  whether  they 
would  have  exclaimed, '  Lo !  this  is  our  God,  we  have  waited 
for  him,  and  he  will  save  us;'  or  whether  they  would  have 
called  for  rocks  and  mountains  to  fall  on  them  to  hide  them 
from  the  face  of  Him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  from 
the  wrath  of  the  Lamb.  God  thus,  as  we  believe,  has  tested 
his  people,  has  tried  their  faith,  has  proved  them,  and  seen 
whether  they  would  shrink,  in  the  hour  of  trial,  from  the 
position  in  which  he  might  see  fit  to  place  them;  and 
whether  they  would  relinquish  this  world  and  rely  with 
implicit  confidence  in  the  work  of  God." 

The  feelings  of  those  who  still  believed  that  God  had  led 
them  in  their  past  experience,  are  expressed  in  the  words  of 
William  Miller:  "Were  I  to  live  my  life  over  again,  with 
the  same  evidence  that  I  then  had,  to  be  honest  with  God 
and  men  I  should  have  to  do  as  I  have  done."  "  I  hope  I 
have  cleansed  my  garments  from  the  blood  of  souls;  I  feel 
that,  as  far  as  possible,  I  have  freed  myself  from  all  guilt  in 
their  condemnation."  "Although  I  have  been  twice  disap- 
pointed," wrote  this  man  of  God,  "I  am  not  yet  cast  down  or 


PROPHECIES  FULFILLED.  4of 


discouraged."  "  My  hope  in  the  coming  of  Christ  is  as  strong 
as  ever.  I  have  done  only  what,  after  years  of  sober  con- 
sideration, I  felt  it  my  solemn  duty  to  do.  If  I  have  erred, 
it  has  been  on  the  side  of  charity,  the  love  of  my  fellow-man, 
and  my  conviction  of  duty  to  God."  "  One  thing  I  do  know, 
I  have  preached  nothing  but  what  I  believed;  and  God's 
hand  has.  been  with  rne,  his  power  has  been  manifested  in 
the  work,  and  much  good  has  been  effected."  "Many  thou- 
sands, to  all  human  appearance,  have  been  made  to  study 
the  Scriptures  by  the  preaching  of  the  time;  and  by  that 
means,  through  faith  and  the  sprinkling  of  the  blood  of 
Christ,  have  been  reconciled  to  God.''  "  I  have  never  courted 
the  smiles  of  the  proud,  nor  quailed  when  the  world  frowned. 
I  shall  not  now  purchase  their  favor,  nor  shall  I  go  beyond 
duty  to  tempt  their  hate.  I  shall  never  seek  my  life  at  their 
hands,  nor  shrink,  I  hope,  from  losing  it,  if  God  in  his  good 
providence  so  orders." 

God  did  not  forsake  his  people;  his  Spirit  still  abode  with 
those  who  did  not  rashly  deny  the  light  which  they  had 
received,  and  denounce  the  Advent  movement.  In  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  are  words  of  encouragement  and 
warning  for  the  tried,  waiting  ones  at  this  crisis :  "  Cast  not 
away  therefore  your  confidence,  which  hath  great  recom- 
pense of  reward.  For  ye  have  need  of  patience,  that,  after 
ye  have  done  the  will  of  God,  ye  might  receive  the  promise. 
For  yet  a  little  while,  and  He  that  shall  come  will  come, 
and  will  not  tarry.  Now  the  just  shall  live  by  faith;  but  if 
any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall  have  no  pleasure  in  him. 
But  we  are  not  of  them  who  draw  back  unto  perdition;  but 
of  them  that  believe  to  the  saving  of  the  soul."1 

That  this  admonition  is  addressed  to  the  church  in  the 
last  days  is  evident  from  the  words  pointing  to  the  nearness 
of  the  Lord's  coming:  "For  yet  a  little  while,  and  He  that 
shall  come  will  come,  and  will  not  tarry."  And  it  is  plainly 
implied  that  there  would  be  a  seeming  delay,  and  that  the 
Lord  would  appear  to  tarry.  The  instruction  here  given  is 

1  Heb.  10  :  35-39. 


408  y///:  (,•  /t  /:.  i  y 


especially  adapted  to  the  experience  of  Adventists  at  this 
time.  The  people  here  addressed  were  in  danger  of  making 
shipwreck  of  faith.  They  had  done  the  will  of  God  in  fol- 
lowing the  guidance  of  his  Spirit  and  his  Word;  yet  they 
could  not  understand  his  purpose  in  their  past  experience, 
nor  could  they  discern  the  pathway  before  them,  and  they 
were  tempted  to  doubt  whether  God  had  indeed  been  lead- 
ing them.  At  this  time  the  words  were  applicable,  "Now 
the  just  shall  live  by  faith."  As  the  bright  light  of  the 
"midnight  cry"  had  shone  upon  their  pathway,  and  they 
had  seen  the  prophecies  unsealed,  and  the  rapidly  fulfilling 
signs  telling  that  the  coming  of  Christ  was  near,  they  had 
wralked,  as  it  were,  by  sight.  But  now,  bowed  down  by  disap- 
pointed hopes,  they  could  stand  only  by  faith  in  God  and 
in  his  Word.  The  scoffing  world  were  saying,  "  You  have 
been  deceived.  Give  up  your  faith,  and  say  that  the  Advent 
movement  was  of  Satan."  But  God's  Word  declared,  "If 
any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall  have  no  pleasure  in  . 
him."  To  renounce  their  faith  now,  and  deny  the  power  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  which  had  attended  the  message,  would  be 
drawing  back  toward  perdition.  They  were  encouraged  to 
steadfastness  by  the  words  of  Paul,  "Cast  not  away  there- 
fore your  confidence;"  "ye  have  need  of  patience;"  "for  yet 
a  little  while,  and  He  that  shall  come  will  come,  and  will 
not  tarry."  Their  only  safe  course  was  to  cherish  the  light 
which  they  had  already  received  of  God,  hold  fast  to  his 
promises,  and  continue  to  search  the  Scriptures,  and  patiently 
wait  and  watch  to  receive  further  light. 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 


WHAT  IS  THK  vSANCTUARY? 

THE  scripture  which  above  all  others  had  been  both  the 
foundation  and  central  pillar  of  the  Advent  faith  was  the 
declaration,  "  Unto  two  thousand  and  three  hundred  days; 
then  shall  the  sanctuary  be  cleansed."1  These  had  been 
familiar  words  to  all  believers  in  the  Lord's  soon  coming. 
Bv  the  lips  of  thousands  was  this  prophecy  repeated  as  the 
watchword  of  their  faith.  All  felt  that  upon  the  events 
therein  foretold  depended  their  brightest  expectations  and 
most  cherished  hopes.  These  'prophetic  days  had  been 
shown  to  terminate  in  the  autumn  of  1844.  In  common 
with  the  rest  of  the  Christian  world,  Adventists  then  held 
that  the  earth,  or  some  portion  of  it,  was  the  sanctuary. 
They  understood  that  the  cleansing  of  the  sanctuary  was  the 
purification  of  the  earth  by  the  fires  of  the  last  great  day, 
and  that  this  would  take  place  at  the  second  advent.  Hence 
the  conclusion  that  Christ  would  return  to  the  earth  in  1844. 

But  the  appointed  time  had  passed,  and  the  Lord  had  not 
appeared.  The  believers  knew  that  God's  Word  could  not 
fail;  their  interpretation  of  the  prophecy  must  be  at  fault; 
but  where  was  the  mistake?  Many  rashly  cut  the  knot  of 
difficulty  by  denying  that  the  2300  days  ended  in  1844. 
No  reason  could  be  given  for  this,  except  that  Christ  had 
not  come  at  the  time  they  expected  him.  They  argued  that 
if  the  prophetic  days  had  ended  in  1844,  Christ  would  then 
have  returned  to  cleanse  the  sanctuary  by  the  purification  of 
the  earth  by  fire;  and  that  since  he  had  not  come,  the  days 
could  not  have  ended. 

To   accept  this   conclusion  was  to  renounce   the  former 

'Dan.  8:14. 

(409; 


410  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods.  The  2300  days  had 
been  found  to  begin  when  the  commandment  of  Artaxerxes 
for  the  restoration  and  building  of  Jerusalem  went  into 
effect,  in  the  autumn  of  B.  c.  457.  Taking  this  as  the 
starting-point,  there  was  perfect  harmony  in  the  application 
of  all  the  events  foretold  in  the  explanation  of  that  period 
in  Dan.  9 : 25-27.  Sixty-nine  weeks,  the  first  483  of  the  2300 
years,  were  to  reach  to  the  Messiah,  the  Anointed  One;  and 
Christ's  baptism  and  anointing  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  A.  D.  27, 
exactly  fulfilled  the  specification.  In  the  midst  of  the  sev- 
entieth week,  Messiah  was  to  be  cut  off.  Three  and  a  half 
years  after  his  baptism,  Christ  was  crucified,  in  the  spring  of 
A.  D.  31.  The  seventy  weeks,  or  490  years,  were  to  pertain 
especially  to  the  Jews.  At  the  expiration  of  this  period,  the 
nation  sealed  its  rejection  of  Christ  by  the  persecution  of  his 
disciples,  and  the  apostles  turned  to  the  Gentiles,  A.  D.  34. 
The  first  490  years  of  the  2300  having  then  ended,  1810 
years  would  remain.  From  A.  D.  34,  1810  years  extend  to 
1844.  "Then,"  said  the  angel,  "shall  the  sanctuary  be 
cleansed."  All  the  preceding  specifications  of  the  prophecy 
had  been  unquestionably  fulfilled  at  the  time  appointed. 
With  this  reckoning,  all  was  clear  and  harmonious,  except 
that  it  was  not  seen  that  any  event  answering  to  the  cleans- 
ing of  the  sanctuary  had  taken  place  in  1844.  To  deny  that 
the  days  ended  at  that  time  was  to  involve  the  whole  ques- 
tion in  confusion,  and  to  renounce  positions  which  had  been 
established  by  unmistakable  fulfillments  of  prophecy. 

But  God  had  led  his  people  in  the  great  Advent  move- 
ment; his  power  and  glory  had  attended  the  work,  and  he 
would  not  permit  it  to  end  in  darkness  and  disappointment, 
to  be  reproached  as  a  false  and  fanatical  excitement.  I  If 
would  not  leave  his  word  involved  in  doubt  and  uncer- 
tainty. Though  many  abandoned  their  former  reckoning 
of  the  prophetic  periods,  and  denied  the  correctness  of  the 
movement  based  thereon,  others  were  unwilling  to  renounce 
points  of  faith  and  experience  that  were  sustained  by  the 


\VHA  T  JS  THE  SANCTUARY?  411 

Scriptures  and  by  the  witness  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  They 
believed  that  they  had  adopted  sound  principles  of  interpre- 
tation in  their  study  of  the  prophecies,  and  that  it  was  their 
duty  to  hold  fast  the  truths  already  gained,  and  to  continue 
the  same  course  of  Biblical  research.  With  earnest  prayer 
they  reviewed  their  position,  and  studied  the  Scriptures  to 
discover  their  mistake.  As  they  could  see  no  error  in  their 
reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods,  they  were  led  to  examine 
more  closely  the  subject  of  the  sanctuary.1 

In  their  investigation  they  learned  that  there  is  no 
Scripture  evidence  sustaining  the  popular  view  that  the 
earth  is  the  sanctuary;  but  they  found  in  the  Bible  a  full 
explanation  of  the  subject  of  the  sanctuary,  its  nature,  loca- 
tion, and  services;  the  testimony  of  the  sacred  writers  being 
so  clear  and  ample  as  to  place  the  matter  beyond  all  ques- 
tion. The  apostle  Paul,  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  says: 
"Then  verily  the  first  covenant  had  also  ordinances  of 
divine  service,  and  a  worldly  sanctuary.  For  there  was  a 
tabernacle  made;  the  first,  wherein  was  the  candlestick,  and 
the  table,  and  the  show^-bread;  which  is  called  the  sanctuary. 
And  after  the  second  veil,  the  tabernacle  which  is  called  the 
holiest  of  all;  which  had  the  golden  censer,  and  the  ark  of 
the  covenant  overlaid  round  about  with  gold,  wherein  was 
the,golden  pot  that  had  manna,  and  Aaron's  rod  that  bud- 
ded, and  the  tables  of  the  covenant;  and  over  it  the  cheru- 
bim of  glory  shadowing  the  mercy-seat." j 

The  sanctuary  to  which  Paul  here  refers  was  the  taber- 
nacle built  by  Moses  at  the  command  of  God,  as  the  earthly 
dwelling-place  of  the  Most  High.  "Let  them  make  me  a 
sanctuary,  that  I  may  dwell  among  them,"3  was  the  direc- 
tion given  to  Moses  while  in  the  mount  with  God.  The 
Israelites  were  journeying  through  the  wilderness,  and  the 
tabernacle  was  so  constructed  that  it  could  be  removed  from 
place  to  place;  yet  it  was  a  structure  of  great  magnificence. 
Its  walls  consisted  of  upright  boards  heavily  plated  with 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  6.  2  Heb.  9:15.  3  Ex.  25  : 8. 


41 2  TIIK  ORE  A  T  C  'OXTR  O  VERSY. 

gold,  and  set  in  sockets  of  silver,  while  the  roof  was  formed 
of  a  series  of  curtains,  or  coverings,  the  outer  of  skins, 
the  innermost  of  fine  linen  beautifully  wrought  with  figures 
of  cherubim.  Besides  the  outer  court,  which  contained  the 
altar  of  burnt-offering,  the  tabernacle  itself  consisted  of  two 
apartments  called  the  holy  and  the  most  holy  place,  sepa- 
rated by  a  rich  and  beautiful  curtain,  or  veil;  a  similar  vt^il 
closed  the  entrance  to  the  first  apartment. 

In  the  holy  place  was  the  candlestick,  on  the  south,  with 
its  seven  lamps  giving  light  to  the  sanctuary  both  by  day 
and  by  night;  on  the  north  stood  the  table  of  show-bread; 
and  before  the  veil  separating  the  holy  from  the  most  1ml  y 
was  the  golden  altar  of  incense,  from  which  the  cloud  of 
fragrance,  with  the  prayers  of  Israel,  was  daily  ascending 
before  God. 

In  the  most  holy  place  stood  the  ark,  a  chest  of  precious 
wood  overlaid  with  gold,  the  depository  of  the  two  tables  of 
stone  upon  which  God  had  inscribed  the  law  of  ten  com- 
mandments. Above  the  ark,  and  forming  the  cover  to  the 
sacred  chest,  was  the  mercy-seat,  a  magnificent  piece  of 
workmanship,  surmounted  by  two  cherubim,  one  at  each 
end,  and  all  wrought  of  solid  gold.  In  this  apartment  the 
divine  presence  was  manifested  in  the  cloud  of  glory  between 
the  cherubim. 

After  the  settlement  of  the  Hebrews  in  Canaan,  the  taber- 
nacle was  replaced  by  the  temple  of  Solomon,  which,  though 
a  permanent  structure  and  upon  a  larger  scale,  observed 
the  same  proportions,  and  was  similarly  furnished.  In  this 
form  the  sanctuary  existed — except  while  it  lay  in  ruins  in 
Daniel's  time — until  its  destruction  by  the  Romans,  A.  D.  70. 

This  is  the  only  sanctuary  that  ever  existed  on  the  earth, 
of  which  the  Bible  gives  any  information.  This  was  declared 
by  Paul  to  be  the  sanctuary  of  the  first  covenant.  But  has 
the  new  covenant  no  sanctuary? 

Turning  again  to  the  book  of  Hebrews,  the  seekers  for 
truth  found  that  the  existence  of  a  second,  or  new-cove- 


WHA  T  IS  THE  SA NCTUAR Yf  413 


nant  sanctuary  was  implied  in  the  words  of  Paul  already 
quoted:  "Then  verily  the  first  covenant  had  also  ordinances 
of  divine  service,  and  a  worldly  sanctuary."  And  the  use 
of  -the  word  also  intimates  that  Paul  has  before  made  men- 
tion of  this  sanctuary.  Turning  back  to  the  beginning  of 
the  previous  chapter  they  read:  "Now  of  the  things  which 
we  have  spoken  this  is  the  sum:  We  have  such  an  high 
priest,  who  is  set  on  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  the 
Majesty  in  the  heavens;  a  minister  of  the  sanctuary,  and  of 
the  true  tabernacle,  which  the  Lord  pitched,  and  not  man."1 

Here  is  revealed  the  sanctuary  of  the  new  covenant. 
The  sanctuary  of  the  first  covenant  was  pitched  by  man, 
built  by  Moses;  this  is  pitched  by  the  Lord,  not  by  man. 
In  that  sanctuary  the  earthly  priests  performed  their  service; 
in  this,  Christ,  our  great  high  priest,  ministers  at  God's  right 
hand.  One  sanctuary  was  on  earth,  the  other  is  in  Heaven. 

Further,  the  tabernacle  built  by  Moses  was  made  after  a 
pattern.  The  Lord  directed  him,  "According  to  all  that  I 
show  thee,  after  the  pattern  of  the  tabernacle,  and  the  pat- 
tern of  all  the  instruments  thereof,  even  so  shall  ye  make 
it,"'2  And  again  the  charge  was  given,  "Look  that  thou 
make  them  after  their  pattern,  which  was  showed  thee  in  the 
mount."2  And  Paul  says,  that  the  first  tabernacle  "was  a 
figure  for  the  time  then  present,  in  which  were  offered  both 
gifts  and  sacrifices;"  that  its  holy  places  were  "patterns  of 
things  in  the  heavens;"  that  the  priests  who  offered  gifts 
according  to  the  law,  served,  "unto  the  example  and  shadow 
of  heavenly  things,"  and  that  "Christ  is  not  entered  into 
the  holy  places  made  with  hands,  which  are  the  figures  of 
the  true,  but  into  Heaven  itself,  now  to  appear  in  the  pres- 
ence of  God  for  us."3 

The  sanctuary  in  Heaven,  in  which  Jesus  ministers  in 
our  behalf,  is  the  great  original,  of  which  the  sanctuary 
built  by  Moses  was  a  copy.  God  placed  his  Spirit  upon  the 
builders  of  the  earthly  sanctuary.  The  artistic  skill  dis- 

'Heb.   8:1,2.      2  Ex.  25:9,  40.      3  Heb.  9  :9,  23  ;  8  :  6  ;   9  :  24. 


414  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

played  in.  its  construction  was  a  manifestation  of  divine 
wisdom.  The  walls  had  the  appearance  of  massive  gold, 
reflecting  in  every  direction  the  light  of  the  seven  lamps 
of  the  golden  candlestick.  The  table  of  show-bread  and  the 
altar  of  incense  glittered  like  burnished  gold.  The  gor- 
geous curtain  which  formed  the  ceiling,  inwrought  with 
figures  of  angels  in  blue  and  purple  and  scarlet,  added  to 
the  beauty  of  the  scene.  And  beyond  the  second  veil  was 
the  holy  shekinah,  the  visible  manifestation  of  God's  glory, 
before  which  none  but  the  high  priest  could  enter  and  live. 
The  matchless  splendor  of  the  earthly  tabernacle  reflected 
to  human  vision  the  glories  of  that  heavenly  temple  where 
Christ  our  forerunner  ministers  for  us  before  the  throne  of 
God.  The  abiding-place  of  the  King  of  kings,  where  thou- 
sand thousands  minister  unto -him,  and  ten  thousand  times 
ten  thousand  stand  before  him;1  that  temple,  filled  with 
the  glory  of  the  eternal  throne,  where  seraphim,  its  .shining 
guardians,  veil  their  faces  in  adoration,  could  find,  in  the 
most  magnificent  structure  ever  reared  by  human  hands, 
but  a  faint  reflection  of  its  vastness  and  glory.  Yet  impor- 
tant truths  concerning  the  heavenly  sanctuary  and  the 
great  work  there  carried  forward  for  man's  redemption, 
were  taught  by  the  earthly  sanctuary  and  its  services. 

The  holy  places  of  the  sanctuary  in  Heaven  are  represented 
by  the  two  apartments  in  the  sanctuary  on  earth.  As  in 
vision  the  apostle  John  was  granted  a  view  of  the  temple  of 
God  in  Heaven,  lie  beheld  there  "seven  lamps  of  fire  burn- 
ing before  the  throne."'2  He  saw  an  angel  "having  a  golden 
censer;  and  there  was  given  unto  him  much  incense,  that 
he  should  offer  it  with  the  prayers  of  all  saints  upon  the 
golden  altar  which  was  before  the  throne."8  Here  the 
prophet  was  permitted  to  behold  the  first  apartment  of  the 
sanctuary  in  Heaven;  and  he  saw  there  the  "seven  lamps 
of  fire"  and  the  "golden,  altar"  represented  by  the  golden 
candlestick  and  the  altar  of  ineense  in  the  sanctuary  on 
1  Dan.  7:10.  2  Rev.  4:5.  3  Rev.  8  :  :i. 


WHAT  IS  THE  SANCTUARY?  415 


earth.  Again,  "the  temple  of  God  was  opened,"1  and  he 
looked  within  the  inner  veil,  upon  the  holy  of  holies.  Here 
he  beheld  "the  ark  of  His  testament,"  represented  by  the 
sacred  chest  constructed  by  Moses  to  contain  the  law  of  God. 

Thus  those  who  were  studying  the  subject  found  indisput- 
able proof  of  the  existence  of  a  sanctuary  in  Heaven.  Moses 
made  the  earthly  sanctuary  after  a  pattern  which  was 
shown  him.  Paul  declares  that  that  pattern  was  the  true 
sanctuary  which  is  in  Heaven.  And  John  testifies  that  he 
saw  it  in  Heaven. 

In  the  temple  in  Heaven,  the  dwelling-place  of  God,  his 
throne  is  established  in  righteousness  and  judgment.  In 
the  most  holy  place  is  his  law,  the  great  rule  of  right  by 
which  all  mankind  are  tested.  The  ark  that  ensnrines  the 
tables  of  the  law  is  covered  with  the  mercy-seat,  before 
which  Christ  pleads  his  blood  in  the  sinner's  behalf.  Thus 
is  represented  the  union  of  justice  and  mercy  in  the  plan  of 
human  redemption.  This  union  infinite  wisdom  alone 
could  devise,  and  infinite  power  accomplish ;  it  is  a  union 
that  fills  all  Heaven  with  wonder  and  adoration.  The 
cherubim  of  the  earthly  sanctuary,  looking  reverently  down 
upon  the  mercy-seat,  represent  the  interest  with  which  the 
heavenly  host  contemplate  the  work  of  redemption.  This 
is  the  mystery  of  mercy  into  which  angels  desire  to  look, — 
that  God  can  be  just  while  he  justifies  the  repenting  sinner, 
and  renews  his  intercourse  with  the  fallen  race;  that  Christ 
could  stoop  to  raise  unnumbered  multitudes  from  the  abyss 
of  ruin,  and  clothe  them  with  the  spotless  garments  of  his 
own  righteousness,  to  unite  with  angels  who  have  never 
fallen,  and  to  dwell  forever  in  the  presence  of  God. 

The  work  of  Christ  as  man's  intercessor  is  presented  in 
that  beautiful  prophecy  of  Zechariah  concerning  him  "  whose 
name  is  The  Branch."  Says  the  prophet:  "He  shall  build 
the  temple  of  the  Lord;  and  he  shall  bear  the  glory,  and 
shall  sit  and  rule  upon  his  [the  Father's]  throne;  and  he 


416  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


shall  be  a  priest  upon  his  throne;  and  the  counsel  of  peace 
shall  be  between  them  both."  ! 

"  He  shall  build  the  temple  of  the  Lord."  By  his  sacrifice 
and  mediation,  Christ  is  both  the  foundation  and  the  builder 
of  the  church  of  God.  The  apostle  Paul  points  to  him  as 
"the  chief  corner-stone;  in  whom  all  the  building  fitly 
framed  together  groweth  unto  a  holy  temple  in  the  Lord ; 
in  whom  ye  also,"  he  says,  "are  builded  together  for  a  hab- 
itation of  God  through  the  Spirit." 2 

"And  he  shall  bear  the  glory."  To  Christ  belongs  the 
glory  of  redemption  for  the  fallen  race.  Through  the  eter- 
nal ages,  the  song  of  the  ransomed  ones  will  be,  "Unto  Him 
that  loved  us,  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his  own  blood, 
.  .  .  to  him  be  glory  and  dominion  forever  and  ever."3 

He  "shall  sit  and  rule  upon  his  throne;  and  he  shall  be  a 
priest  upon  his  throne."  Not  now  "upon  the  throne  of  his 
glory;"  the  kingdom  of  glory  has  not  yet  been  ushered  in. 
Not  until  his  work  as  a  mediator  shall  be  ended,  will  U<><1 
"  give  unto  him  the  throne  of  his  father  David,"  a  kingdom 
of  which  "  there  shall  be  no  end." '  As  a  priest,  Christ  is 
now  set  down  with  the  Father  in  his  throne.5  Upon  the 
throne  with  the  eternal,  self-existent  One,  is  he  who  "hath 
borne  our  griefs,  and  carried  our  sorrows,"  who  "  was  in  all 
points  tempted  like  as  we  are,  yet  without  sin,"  that  he  might 
be  "  able  to  succor  them  that  are  tempted."  "  If  any  man  sin, 
we  have  an  Advocate  with  the  Father."6  His  intercession 
is  that  of  a  pierced  and  broken  body,  of  a  spotless  life.  The 
wounded  hands,  the  pierced  side,  the  marred  feet,  plead  for 
fallen  man,  whose  redemption  was  purchased  at  such  infinite 
cost. 

"And  the  counsel  of  peace  shall  be  between  them  both." 
The  love  of  the  Father,  no  less  than  of  the  Son,  is  the  fount- 
ain of  salvation  for  the  lost  race.  Said  Jesus  to  his  disciples, 
before  he  went  away,  "I  say  not  unto  you,  that  I  will  pray 

1  7,-ch.  ()  :  1  :*.       *  Eph.  2  :  20-22.       3  Rev.  1  : 5,  6.      4  Luke  1  : 32,  33. 
&  Rev.  3  :21.        °lsa.  53:4;  ±ieb.  4:  15;  2:18;  1  Johu2:L 


WHAT  IS  THE  SANCTUARY?  417 


the  Father  for  you;  for  the  Father  himself  loveth  you."1 
God  was  "in  Christ,  reconciling  the  world  unto  himself."2 
And  in  the  ministration  in  the  sanctuary  above,  "the  counsel 
of  peace  shall  be  between  them  both."  "God  so  loved  the 
world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting 
life."3 

The  question,  What  is  the  sanctuary?  is  clearly  an- 
swered in  the  Scriptures.  The  term  sanctuary,  as  used  in 
the  Bible,  refers,  first,  to  the  .tabernacle  built  by  Moses,  as 
a  pattern  of  heavenly  things;  and,  secondly,  to  the  "true 
tabernacle"  in  Heaven,  to  which  the  earthly  sanctuary 
pointed.  At  the  death  of  Christ  the  typical  service  ended. 
The  "true  tabernacle"  in  Heaven  is  the  sanctuary  of  the 
new  covenant.  And  as  the  prophecy  of  Dan.  8 : 14  is  ful- 
filled in  this  dispensation,  the  sanctuary  to  which  it  refers 
must  be  the  sanctuary  of  the  new  covenant.  At  the  termi- 
nation of  the  2300  days,  in  1844,  there  had  been  no  sanct- 
uary on  earth  for  many  centuries.  Thus  the  prophecy, 
"Unto  two  thousand  three  hundred  days;  then  shall  the 
sanctuary  be  cleansed,"  unquestionably  points  to  the  sanc- 
tuary in  Heaven. 

But  the  most  important  question  remains  to  be  answered: 
What  is  the  cleansing  of  the  sanctuary?  That  there  was 
such  a  service  in  connection  with  the  earthly  sanctuary,  is 
stated  in  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures.  But  can  there  be 
anything  in  Heaven  to  be  cleansed?  In  Hebrews  9  the 
cleansing  of  both  the  earthly  and  the  heavenly  sanctuary  is 
plainly  taught.  "Almost  all  things  are  by  the  law  purged 
with  blood;  and  without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission. 
It  was  therefore  necessary  that  the  patterns  of  things  in  the 
heavens  should  be  purified  with  these  [the  blood  of  animals]; 
but  the  heavenly  things  themselves  with  better  sacrifices 
than  these," 4  even  the  precious  blood  of  Christ. 

The  cleansing,  both  in  the  typical  and  in  the  real  service, 

1  John  1 6  :  26,  27.      2  2  Cor.  5:19.      3  John  3:16.      *  Heb.  9 :  22,  23 
31 


418  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

must  be  accomplished  with  blood;  in  the  former,  with  the 
blood  of  animals;  in  the  latter,  with  the  blood  of  Christ. 
Paul  states,  as  the  reason  why  this  cleansing  must  be  per- 
formed with  blood,  that  without  shedding  of  blood  is  no 
remission.  Remission,  or  putting  away  of  sin,  is  the  work 
to  be  accomplished.  But  how  could  there  be  sin  connected 
with  the  sanctuary,  either  in  Heaven  or  upon  the  earth? 
This  may  be  learned  by  reference  to  the  symbolic  service; 
for  the  priests  who  officiated  on  earth,  served  "unto  the 
example  and  shadow  of  heavenly  things." l 

The  ministration  of  the  earthly  sanctuary  consisted  of 
two  divisions;  the  priests  ministered  daily  in  the  holy  place, 
while  once  a  year  the  high  priest  performed  a  special  work 
of  atonement  in  the  most  holy,  for  the  cleansing,  of  the 
sanctuary.  Day  by  day  the  repentant  sinner  brought  his 
offering  to  the  door  of  the  tabernacle,  and  placing  his  hand 
upon  the  victim's  head,  confessed  his  sins,  thus  in  figure 
transferring  them  from  himself  to  the  innocent  sacrifice. 
The  animal  was  then  slain.  "  Without  shedding  of  blood,'' 
says  the  apostle,  there  is  no  remission  of  sin.  "  The  life  of  the 
flesh  is  in  the  blood." a  The  broken  law  of  God  demanded  the 
life  of  the  transgressor.  The  blood,  representing  the  forfeited 
life  of  the  sinner,  whose  guilt  the  victim  bore,  was  carried 
by  the  priest"  into  the  holy  place  and  sprinkled  before  the 
veil,  behind  which  was  the  ark  containing  the  law  that  the 
sinner  had  transgressed.  By  this  ceremony  the  sin  was, 
through  the  blood,  transferred  in  figure  to  the  sanctuary. 
In  some  cases  the  blood  was  not  taken  into  the  holy  place; 
but  the  flesh  was  then  to  be  eaten  by  the  priest,  as  Moses  di- 
rected the  sons  of  Aaron,  saying,  "God  Imth  given  it  you  to 
bear  the  iniquity  of  the  congregation. "s  Both  ceremonies 
alike  symbolize  the  transfer  of  the  sin  from  the  penitent  to 
the  sanctuary. 

Such  was  the  work  that  went  on,  day  by  day,  throughout 
the  year.  The  sins  of  Israel  were  thus  transferred  to  the 

'Heb.  8:5.  'Lev.  17:11.  :1  Lev.  10:  17. 


WHAT  IS  THE  SANCTUARY?  419 

sanctuary,  and  a  special  work  became  necessary  for  their 
removal.  God  commanded  that  an  atonement  be  made  for 
each  of  the  sacred  apartments.  "  He  shall  make  an  atone- 
ment for  the  holy  place,  because  of  the  uncleanness  of  the 
children  of  Israel,  and  because  of  their  transgressions  in  all 
their  sins;  and  so  shall  he  do  for  the  tabernacle  of  the  con- 
gregation, that  remaineth  among  them  in  the  midst  of  their 
uncleanness." 1  An  atonement  was  also  to  be  made  for  the 
altar,  to  "cleanse  it,  and  hallow  it  from  the  uncleanness  of 
the  children  of  Israel." l 

Once  a  year,  on  the  great  day  of  atonement,  the  priest 
entered  the  most  holy  place  for  the  cleansing  of  the  sanct- 
uary. .The  work  there  performed  completed  the  yearly 
round  of  ministration.  On  the  day  of  atonement,  two  kids 
of  the  goats  were  brought  to  the  door  of  the  tabernacle, 
and  lots  were  cast  upon  them,  "  one  lot  for  the  Lord,  and 
the  other  lot  for  the -scape-goat.'"  The  goat  upon  which 
fell  the  lot  for  the  Lord  was  to  be  slain  as  a  sin-offering 
for  the  people.  And  the  priest  was  to  bring  his  blood 
within  the  veil,  and  sprinkle  it  upon  the  mercy-seat,  and 
before  the  mercy-seat.  The  blood  was  also  to  be  sprinkled 
upon  the  altar  of  incense,  that  was  before  the  veil. 

"And  Aaron  shall  lay  both  his  hands  upon  the  head  of 
the  live  goat,  and  confess  over  him  all  the  iniquities  of  the 
children  of  Israel,  and  all  their  transgressions  in  all  their 
sins,  putting  them  upon  the  head  of  the  goat,  and  shall 
send  him  away  by  the  hand  of  a  fit  man  into  the  wilder- 
ness; arid  the  goat  shall  bear  upon  him  all  their  iniquities 
unto  a  land  not  inhabited." a  The  scape-goat  came  no  more 
into  the  camp  of  Israel,  and  the  man  who  led  him  away 
was  required  to  wash  himself  and  his  clothing  with  water 
before  returning  to  the  camp. 

The  whole  ceremony  was  designed  to  impress  the  Israelites 
with  the  holiness  of  .God  and  his  abhorrence  of  sin;  and, 
further,  to  show  them  that  they  could  not  come  in  contact 

1  Lev.  16:16,  19.  a  Lev.  16  :  8,  21,  22. 


420  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


with  sin  without  becoming  polluted.  Every  man  was  re- 
quired to  afflict  his  soul  while  this  work  of  atonement  was 
going  forward.  All  business  was  to  be  laid  aside,  and  the 
whole  congregation  of  Israel  were  to  spend  the  day  in  solemn 
humiliation  before  God,  with  prayer,  fasting,  and  deep 
searching  of  heart. 

Important  truths  concerning  the  atonement  are  taught  by 
the  typical  service.  A  substitute  was  accepted  in  the  sinner's 
stead;  but  the  sin  was  not  canceled  by  the  blood  of  the 
victim.  A  means  was  thus  provided  by  which  it  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  sanctuary.  By  the  offering  of  blood,  the  sinner 
acknowledged  the  authority  of  the  law,  confessed  his  guilt 
in  transgression,  and  expressed  his  desire  for  pardon  through 
faith  in  a  Redeemer  to  come;  but  he  was  not  yet  entirely 
released  from  the  condemnation  of  the  law.  On  the  day  of 
atonement  the  high  priest,  having  taken  an  offering  from 
the  congregation,  went  into  the  most' holy  place  with  the 
blood  of  this  gffering,  and  sprinkled  it  upon  the  mercy-seat, 
directly  over  the  law,  to  make  satisfaction  for  its  claims. 
Then,  in  his  character  of  mediator,  he  took  the  sins  upon 
himself,  and  bore  them  from  the  sanctuary.  Placing  his 
hands  upon  the  head  of  the  scape-goat,  he  confessed  over 
him  all  these  sins,  thus  in  figure  transferring  them  from 
himself  to  the  goat.  The  goat  then  bore  them  away,  and 
they  were  regarded  as  forever  separated  from  the  people. 

Such  was  the  service  performed  "unto  the  example  and 
shadow  of  heavenly  things."  And  what  was  done  in  type 
in  the  ministration  of  the  earthly  sanctuary,  is  done  in  reality 
in  the  ministration  of  the  heavenly  sanctuary.  After  his 
ascension,  our  Saviour  began  his  work  as  our  high  priest. 
Says  Paul,  "Christ  is  not  entered  into  the  holy  places  made 
with  hands,  which  are  the  figures  of  the  true;  but  into 
Heaven  itself,  now  to  appear  in  the  presence  <>f  ( l<>d  for  us."  ' 

The  ministration -of  the  priest  throughout  the  year  in  the 
first  apartment  of  the  sanctuary,  "within  the  veil"  which 
formed  the  door  and  separated  the  holy  place  from  the  outer 

'Heb.  9:24. 


Engraved  Expressly  for  "Great  Controversy." 


Copyrighted  1890, 


THE   ATONEMENT. 


WHAT  IS  THE  SANCTUARY?  421 


court,  represents  the  work  of  ministration  upon  which  Christ 
entered  at  his  ascension.  It  was  the  work  of  the  priest  in 
the  daily  ministration  to  present  before  God  the  blood  of 
the  sin-offering,  also  the  incense  which  ascended  with  the 
prayers  of  Israel.  So  did  Christ  plead  his  blood  before  the 
Father  in  behalf  of  sinners,  and  present  before  him  also, 
with  the  precious  fragrance  of  his  own  righteousness,  the 
prayers  of  penitent  believers.  Such  was  the  work  of  minis- 
tration in  the  first  apartment  of  the  sanctuary  in  Heaven. 

Thither  the  faith  of  Christ's  disciples  followed  him  as  he 
ascended  from  their  sight.  Here  their  hopes  centered, 
"which  hope  we  have,"  said  Paul,  "as  an  anchor  of  the  soul, 
both  sure  and  steadfast,  and  which  entereth  into  that  within 
the  veil;  whither  the  forerunner  is  for  us  entered,  even  Jesus, 
made  an  high  priest  forever."  "Neither  by  the  blood  of 
goats  and  calves,  but  by  his  own  blood  he  entered  in  once 
into  the  holy  place,  having  obtained  eternal  redemption 
for  us."1 

For  eighteen  centuries  this  work  of  ministration  con- 
tinued in  the  first  apartment  of  the  sanctuary.  The  blood 
of  Christ,  pleaded  in  behalf  of  penitent  believers,  secured 
their  pardon  and  acceptance  with  the  Father,  yet  their  sins 
still  remained  upon  the  books  of  record.  As  in  the  typical 
service  there  was  a  work  of  atonement  at  the  close  of  the 
year,  so  before  Christ's  work  for  the  redemption  of  men  is 
completed,  there  is  a  work  of  atonement  for  the  removal  of 
sin  from  the  sanctuary.  This  is  the  service  which  began 
when  the  2300  days  ended.  At  that  time,  as  foretold  by 
Daniel  the  prophet,  our  High  Priest  entered  the  most  holy, 
to  perform  the  last  division  of  his  solemn  work, — to  cleanse 
the  sanctuary. 

As  anciently  the  sins  of  the  people  were  by  faith  placed 
upon  the  sin-offering,  and  through  its  blood  transferred,  in 
figure,  to  the  earthly  sanctuary,  so  in  the  new  covenant  the 
sins  of  the  repentant  are  by  faith  placed  upon  Christ,  and 
transferred,  in  fact,  to  the  heavenly  sanctuary.  And  as  the 

.  6  ;  19,  20;  9  : 12. 


422  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


typical  cleansing  of  the  earthly  was  accomplished  by  the 
removal  of  the  sins  by  which  it  had  been  polluted,  so  the 
actual  cleansing  of  the  heavenly  is  to  be  accomplished  by 
the  removal,  or  blotting  out,  of  the  sins  which  are  there 
recorded.  But,  before  this  can  be  accomplished,  there  must 
be  an  examination  of  the  books  of  record  to  determine  who, 
through  repentance  of  sin,  and  faith  in  Christ,  are  entitled 
to  the  benefits  of  his  atonement.  The  cleansing  of  the 
sanctuary"  therefore  involves  a  work  of  investigation, — a 
work  of  judgment.  This  work  must  be  performed  prior  to 
the  corning  of  Christ  to  redeem  his  people;  for  when  he 
comes,  his  reward  is  with  him  to  give  to  every  man  accord- 
ing to  his  works. l 

Thus  those  who  followed  in  the  light  of  the  prophetic 
word  saw,  that,  instead  of  coming  to  the  earth  at  the  ter- 
mination of  the  2300  days  in  1844,  Christ  then  entered 
the  most  holy  place  of  the  heavenly  sanctuary,  to  perform 
the  closing  work  of  atonement,  preparatory  to  his  coming. 

It  was  seen,  also,  that  while  the  sin-offering  pointed  to 
Christ  as  a  sacrifice,  and  the  high  priest  represented  Christ 
as  a  mediator,  the  scape-goat  typified  Satan,  the  author  of  sin, 
upon  whom  the  sins  of  the  truly  penitent  will  finally  be 
placed.  When  the  high  priest,  by  virtue  of  the  blood  of 
the  sin-offering,  removed  the  sins  from  the  sanctuary,  he 
placed  them  upon  the  scape-goat.  When  Christ,  by  virtue 
of  his  own  blood,  removes  the  sins  of  his  people  from  the 
heavenly  sanctuary  at  the  close  of  his  ministration,  he  will 
place  them  upon  Satan,  who,  in  the  execution  of  the  judg- 
ment, must  bear  the  final  penalty.  The  scape-goat  was 
sent  away  into  a  L-nid  not  inhabited,  never  to  come  again 
into  the  congregation  of  Israel.  So  will  Satan  be  forever 
banished  from  the  presence  of  God  and  his  people,  and  he 
will  be  blotted  from  existence  in  the  final  destruction  of  sin 
and  sinners. 

i  Rev.  22:12. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 


IN  THE  HOLY  OF  HOLIES. 

THE  subject  of  the  sanctuary  was  the  key  which  unlocked 
the  mystery  of  the  disappointment  of  1844.  It  opened  to 
view  a  complete  system  of  truth,  connected  and  harmonious, 
showing  that  God's  hand  had  directed  the  great  Advent 
movement,  and  revealing  present  duty  as  it  brought  to  light 
the  position  and  work  of  his  people.  As  the  disciples  of 
Jesus,  after  the  terrible  night  of  their  anguish  and  disap- 
pointment, were  "glad  when  they  saw  the  Lord,"  so  did 
those  now  rejoice  who  had  looked  in  faith  for  his  second 
coming.  They  had  expected  him  to  appear  in  glory  to  give 
reward  to  his  servants.  As  their  hopes  were  disappointed, 
they  had  lost  sight  of  Jesus,  and  with  Mary  at  the  sepulcher 
they  cried, "  They  have  taken  away  my  Lord,  and  I  know  not 
where  they  have  laid  him."  Now  in  the  holy  of  holies  they 
again  beheld  him,  their  compassionate  high  priest,  soon  to 
appear  as  their  king  and  deliverer.  Light  from  the  sanctu- 
ary illumed  the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future.  They 
knew  that  God  had  led  them  by  his  unerring  providence. 
Though  like  the  first  disciples  they  themselves  had  failed  to 
understand  the  message  which  they  bore,  yet  it  had  been  in 
every  respect  correct.  In  proclaiming  it  they  had  fulfilled 
the  purpose  of  God,  and  their  labor  had  not  been  in  vain 
in  the  Lord.  "Begotten  again  unto  a  lively  hope,"  they 
rejoiced  "with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory." 

Both  the  prophecy  of  Dan.  8 : 14,  "  Unto  two  thousand  and 
three  hundred  days;  then  shall  the  sanctuary  be  cleansed," 
and  the  first  angel's  message,  "  Fear  God,  and  give  glory  to 
him;  for  the  hour  of  his  Judgment  is  come,"  pointed  to 

(423) 


424  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Christ's  ministration  in  the  most  holy  place,  to  the  investi- 
gative Judgment,  and  not  to  the  coming  of  Christ  for  the 
redemption  of  his  people  and  the  destruction  of  the  wicked. 
The  mistake  had  not  been  in  the  reckoning  of  the  prophetic 
periods,  but  in  the  event  to  take  place  at  the  end  of  the  2300 
days.  Through  this  error  the  believers  had  suffered  dis- 
appointment, yet  all  that  was  foretold  by  the  prophecy,  and 
all  that  they  had  any  Scripture  warrant  to  expect,  had  been 
accomplished.  At  the  very  time  when  they  were  lament- 
ing the  failure  of  their  hopes,  the  event  had  taken  place 
which  was  foretold  by  the  message,  and  which  must  be 
fulfilled  before  the  Lord  could  appear  to  give  reward  to  his 
servants. 

Christ  had  come,  not  to  the  earth,  as  they  expected,  but, 
as  foreshadowed  in  the  type,  to  the  most  holy  place  of  the 
temple  of  God  in  Heaven.  He  is  represented  by  the  prophet 
Daniel  as  coming  at  this  time  to  the  Ancient  of  days:  "I 
saw  in  the  night  visions,  and,  behold,  one  like  the  Son  of 
man  came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven,  and  came" — not  to 
the  earth,  but — "  to  the  Ancient  of  days,  and  they  brought 
him  near  before  him." J 

This  coming  is  foretold  also  by  the  prophet  Malachi: 
"The  Lord,  whom  ye  seek,  shall  suddenly  come  to  his  tem- 
ple, even  the  messenger  of  the  covenant,  whom  ye  delight 
in:  behold,  he  shall  come,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts."2  The 
coming  of  the  Lord  to  his  temple  was  sudden,  unexpected, 
to  his  people.  They  were  not  looking  for  him  there.  They 
expected  him  to  come  to  earth,  "in  flaming  fire  taking 
vengeance  on  them  that  know  not  God,  and  that  obey  not 
the  gospel." 3 

But  the  people  were  not  yet  ready  to  meet  their  Lord. 
There  was  still  a  work  of  preparation  to  be  accomplished 
for  them.  Light  was  to  be  given,  directing  their  minds  to 
the  temple  of  God  in  Heaven;  and  as  they  should  by  faith 
follow  their  High  Priest  in  his  ministration  there,  new  duties 

1  Dan.  7  : 13.  2  Mai.  3:1.  3  2  Thess.  1  : 8. 


IN  Til/:  IIOL  V  OF  HOLIES.  425 


would  be  revealed.  Another  message  of  warning  and  in- 
struction was  to  be  given  to  the  church. 

Says  the  prophet:  "  Who  may  abide  the  day  of  his  coming? 
and  who -shall  stand  when  he  appeareth?  for  he  is  like 
a  refiner's  fire,  and  like  fullers'  soap;  and  he  shall  sit  as  a 
refiner  and  purifier  of  silver;  and  he  shall  purify  the  sons 
of  Levi,  and  purge  them  as  gold  and  silver,  that  they  may 
offer  unto  the  Lord  an  offering  in  righteousness." l  Those 
who  are  living  upon  the  earth  when  the  intercession  of 
Christ  shall  cease  in  the  sanctuary  above,  are  to  stand  in  the 
sight  of  a  holy  God  without  a  mediator.  Their  robes  must 
be  spotless,  their  characters  must  be  purified  from  sin  by 
the  blood  of  sprinkling.  Through  the  grace  of  God  and 
their  own  diligent  effort,  they  must  be  conquerors  in  the 
battle  with  evil.  While  the  investigative  Judgment  is  going 
forward  in  Heaven,  while  the  sins  of  penitent  believers  are 
being  removed  from  the  sanctuary,  there  is  to  be  a  special 
work  of  purification,  of  putting  away  of  sin,  among  God's 
people  upon  earth.  This  work  is  more  clearly  presented  in 
the  messages  of  Revelation  14. 

When  this  work  shall  have  been  accomplished,  the  fol- 
lowers of  Christ  will  be  ready  for  his  appearing.  "Then 
shall  the  offering  of  Judah  and  Jerusalem  be  pleasant  unto 
the  Lord,  as  in  the  days  of  old,  and  as  in  former  years." 2 
Then  the  church  which  our  Lord  at  his  coming  is  to  receive 
to  himself  will  be  "a  glorious  church,  not  having  spot,  or 
wrinkle,  or  any  such  thing."3  Then  she  will  look  forth  "as 
the  morning,  fair  as  the  moon,  clear  as  the  sun,  and  terrible 
as  an  army  with  banners." 4 

Besides  thtr  coming  of  the  Lord  to  his  temple,  Malachi 
also  foretells  his  second  advent,  his  coming  for  the  execution 
of  the  judgment,  in  these  words:  "And  I  will  come  near  to 
you  to  judgment;  and  I  will  be  a  swift  witness  against  the 
sorcerers,  and  against  the  adulterers,  and  against  false 
swearers,  and  against  those  that  oppress  the  hireling  in  his 

1  MaL  3  : 2,  3.         2  Mai.  3:4.          3  Eph.  5  : 27.         4  Cant.  6  : 10. 


426  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


wages,  the  widow,  and  the  fatherless,  and  that  turn  aside 
the  stranger  from  his  right,  and  fear  not  rne,  saith  the  Lord 
of  hosts."1  Jude  refers  to  the  same  scene  when  lie  says, 
"  Behold,  the  Lord  cometh  with  ten  thousands  of  his  saints, 
to  execute  judgment  upon  all,  and  to  convince  all  that  are 
ungodly  among  them  of  all  their  ungodly  .deeds."2  This 
coming,  and  the  coming  of  the  Lord  to  his  temple,  are  dis- 
tinct and  separate  events. 

The  coming  of  Christ  as  our  high  priest  to  the  most  holy 
place,  for  the  cleansing  of  the  sanctuary,  brought  to  view  in 
Dan.  8:14;  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man  to  the  Ancient  of 
days,  as  presented  in  Dan.  7: 13;  and  the  coming  of  the  Lord 
to  his  temple,  foretold  by  Malachi,  are  descriptions  of  the 
same  event;  and  this  is  also  represented  by  the  coming  of 
the  bridegroom  to  the  marriage,  described  by  Christ  in  the 
parable  of  the  ten  virgins,  of  Matthew  25. 

In  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1844,  the  proclamation^ 
"Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh,"  was  given.  The  two 
classes  represented  by  the  wise  and  foolish  virgins  were 
then  developed, — one  class  who  looked  with  joy  to  the 
Lord's  appearing,  and  who  had  been  diligently  preparing 
to  meet  him;  another  class  that,  influenced  by  fear,  and 
acting  from  impulse,  had  been  satisfied  with  a  theory  of  the 
truth,  but  were  destitute  of  the  grace  of  God.  In  the  par- 
able, when  the  bridegroom  came, "  they  that  were  ready  went 
in  with  him  to  the  marriage."  The  coming  of  the  bride- 
groom, here  brought  to  view,  takes  place  before  the  mar- 
riage. The  marriage  represents  the  reception  by  Christ  of 
his  kingdom.  The  holy  city,  the  New  Jerusalem,  which  is 
the  capital  and  representative  of  the  kingdom,^  called  "the 
bride,  the  Lamb's  wife."  Said  the  angel  to  John,  "Come 
hither,  I  will  show  thee  the  bride,  the  Lamb's  wife."  "  He 
carried  me  away  in  the  spirit,"  says  the  prophet,  "and 
showed  me  that  great  city,  the  holy  Jerusalem,  descending 
out  of  Heaven  from  God."  *  Clearly,  then,  the  bride  repre- 

1  Mai.  3:5.          *  Jude  14,  15.  »  Rev.  21  : 9,  10. 


IN  THE  HOLT  OF  HOLIES.  427 


sents  the  holy  city,  and  the  virgins  that  go  out  to  meet  the 
bridegroom  are  a  symbol  of  the  church.  In  the  Revelation 
the  people  of  God  are  said  to  be  the  guests  at  the  marriage 
supper.  l  If  guests,  they  cannot  be  represented  also  as  the 
bride.  Christ,  as  stated  by  the  prophet  Daniel,  will  re- 
ceive from  the  Ancient  of  days  in  Heaven,  "  dominion,  and 
glory,  and  a  kingdom,"  he  will  receive  the  New  Jerusalem, 
the  capital  of  his  kingdom,  "prepared  as  a  bride  adorned 
for  her  husband."2  Having  received  the  kingdom,  he  will 
come  in  his  glory,  as  King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of  lords,  for 
the  redemption  of  his  people,  who  are  to  "sit  down  with 
Abraham,  and  Isaac,  and  Jacob,"  at  his  table  in  his  king- 
dom,3 to  partake  of  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb. 

The  proclamation,  "Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh,"  in 
the  summer  of  1844,  led  thousands  to  expect  the  immediate 
advent  of  the  Lord.  At  the  appointed  time  the  Bridegroom 
came,  not  to  the  earth,  as  the  people  expected,  but  to  the 
Ancient  of  days  in  Heaven,  to  the  marriage,  the  reception  of 
his  kingdom.  "  They  that  were  ready  went  in  with  him  to 
the  marriage,  and  the  door  was  shut."  They  were  not  to  be 
present  in  person  at  the  marriage;  for  it  takes  place  in 
Heaven,  while  they  are  upon  the  earth.  The  followers  of 
Christ  are  to  "wait  for  their  Lord,  when  he  will  return  from 
the  wedding."  *  But  they  are  to  understand  his  work,  and 
to  follow  him  by  faith  as  he  goes  in  before  God.  It  is  in 
this  sense  that  they  are  said  to  go  in  to  the  marriage. 

In  the  parable  it  was  those  that  had  oil  in  their  vessels 
with  their  lamps  that  went  in  to  the  marriage.  Those  who, 
with  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  from  the  Scriptures,  had  also 
the  Spirit  and  grace  of  God,  and  who,  in  the  night  of  their 
bitter  trial,  had  patiently  waited,  searching  the  Bible  for 
clearer  light,  —  these  saw  the  truth  concerning  the  sanctuary 
in  Heaven  and  the  Saviour's  change  of  ministration,  and 
by  faith  they  followed  him  in  his  work  in  the  sanctuary 


.  19  :  9.  2  Dan.  7  :  14  ;  Rev.  21  :  2. 

8  Matt.  8:11;  Luke  22  :  30.  *  Luke  12  :  36. 


428  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


above.  And  all  who  through  the  testimony  of  the  Script- 
ures accept  the  same  truths,  following  Christ  by  faith  as  he 
enters  in  before  God  to  perform  the  last  work  of  mediation, 
and  at  its  close  to  receive  his  kingdom, — all  these  are  repre- 
sented as  going  in  to  the  marriage. 

In  the  parable  of  Matthew  22  the  same  figure  of  the 
marriage  is  introduced,  and  the  investigative  Judgment  is 
clearly  represented  as  taking  place  before  the  marriage. 
Previous  to  the  wedding  the  king  comes  in  to  see  the  guests,1 
—to  see  if  all  are  attired  in  the  wedding  garment,  the  spot- 
less robe  of  character  washed  and  made  white  in  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb. 2  He  who  is  found  wanting  is  cast  out,  but 
all  who  upon  examination,  are  seen  to  have  the  wedding 
garment  on,  are  accepted  of  God,  and  accounted  worthy  of  a 
share  in  his  kingdom  and  a  seat  upon  his  throne.  This 
work  of  examination  of  character,  of  determining  who  are 
prepared  for  the  kingdom  of  God,  is  that  of  the  investigative 
Judgment,  the  closing  work  in  the  sanctuary  above. 

When  the  work  of  investigation  shall  be  ended,  when  the 
cases  of  those  who  in  all  ages  have  professed  to  be  followers 
of  Christ  have  been  examined  and  decided,  then,  and  not 
till  then,  probation  will  close,  and  the  door  of  mercy  will  be 
shut.  Thus  in  the  one  short  sentence,  "They  that  were 
ready  went  in  with  him  to  the  marriage,  and  the  door  was 
shut,"  we  are  carried  down  through  the  Saviour's  final 
ministration,  to  the  time  when  the  great  work  for  man's 
salvation  shall  be  completed. 

In  the  service  of  the  earthly  sanctuary,  which,  as  we  have 
seen,  is  a  figure  of  the  service  in  the  heavenly,  when  the 
high  priest  on  the  day  of  atonement  entered  the  most  holy 
place,  the  ministration  in  the  first  apartment  ceased.  God 
commanded,  "There  shall  be  no  man  in  the  tabernacle  of 
the  congregation  when  he  goeth  in  to  make  an  atonement 
in  the  holy  place,  until  he  come  out."3  So  when  Christ 
entered  the  holy  of  holies  to 'perform  the  closing  work  of 

1  Matt.  22  :  11.  ' «  Kev.  7  : 14.  *  Lev.  16  : 17. 


IN  THE  HOLY  OF  HOLIES.  429 


the  atonement,  he  ceased  his  ministration  in  the  first  apart- 
ment. But  when  -the  ministration  in  the  first  apartment 
ended,  the  ministration  in  the  second  apartment  began. 
When  in  the  typical  service  the  high  priest  left  the  holy  on 
the  day  of  atonement,  he  went  in  before  God  to  present  the 
blood  of  the  sin-offering  in  behalf  of  all  Israel  who  truly 
repented  of  their  sins.  So  Christ  had  only  completed  one 
part  of  his  work  as  our  intercessor,  to  enter  upon  another 
portion  of  the  work,  and  he  still  pleaded  his  blood  before 
the  Father  in  behalf  of  sinners. 

This  subject  was  not  understood  by  Adventists  in  1844. 
After  the  passing  of  the  time  when  the  Saviour  was  expected, 
they  still  believed  his  coming  to  be  near;  they  held  that 
they  had  reached  an  important  crisis,  and  that  the  work  of 
Christ  as  man's  intercessor  before  God,  had  ceased.  It  ap- 
peared to  them  to  be  taught  in  the  Bible,  that  man's  proba- 
tion would  close  a  short  time  before  the  actual  coming  of 
the  Lord  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.  This  seemed  evident 
from  those  scriptures  which  point  to  a  time  when  men 
will  seek,  knock,  and  cry  at  the  door  of  mercy,  and  it  will 
not  be  opened.  And  it  was  a  question  with  them  whether 
the  date  to  which  they  had  looked  for  the  coming  of  Christ 
might  not  rather  mark  the  beginning  of  this  period  which 
was  to  immediately  precede  his  coming.  Having  given  the 
warning  of  the  Judgment  near,  they  felt  that  their  work  for 
the  world  was  done,  and  they  lost  their  burden  of  soul  for 
the  salvation  of  sinners,  while  the  bold  and  blasphemous 
scoffing  of  the  ungodly  seemed  to  them  another  evidence 
that  the  Spirit  of  God  had  been  withdrawn  from  the  reject- 
ers of  his  mercy.  All  this  confirmed  them  in  the  belief 
that  probation  had  ended,  or,  as  they  then  expressed  it,  "  the 
door  of  mercy  was  shut." * 

But  clearer  light  came  with  the  investigation  of  the  sanct- 
uary question.  They  .now  saw  that  they  were  correct  in 
believing  that  the  end  of  the  2300  days  in  1844  marked  an 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  7. 


430  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

important  crisis.  But  while  it  was  true  that  that  door  of 
hope  and  mercy  by  which  men  had  for  eighteen  hundred 
years  found  access  to  God  was  closed,  another  door  was 
opened,  and  forgiveness  of  sins  was  offered  to  men  through 
the  intercession  of  Christ  in  the  most  holy.  One  part  of  his 
ministration  had  closed,  only  to  give  place  to  another. 
There  was  still  an  "open  door"  to  the  heavenly  sanctuary 
where  Christ  was  ministering  in  the  sinner's  behalf. 

Now  was  seen  the  application  of  those  words  of  Christ  in 
the  Revelation,  addressed  to  the  church  at  this  very  time: 
"  These  things  saith  he  that  is  holy,  he  that  is  true,  he  that 
hath  the  key  of  David,  he  that  openeth,  and  no  man  shutteth ; 
and  shutteth,  and  no  man  openeth:  I  know  thy  works;  be- 
hold, I  have  set  before  thee  an  open  door,  and  no  man  can 
shut  it"1 

It  is  those  who  by  faith  follow  Jesus  in  the  great  work  of 
the  atonement,  who  receive  the  benefits  of  his  mediation  in 
their  behalf;  while  those  who  reject  the  light  which  brings 
to  view  this  work  of  ministration,  are  not  benefited  thereby. 
The  Jews  who  rejected  the  light  given  at  Christ's  first 
advent,  and  refused  to  believe  on  him  as  the  Saviour  of  the 
world,  could  not  receive  pardon  through  him.  When  Jesus 
at  his  ascension  entered  by  his  own  blood  into  the  heavenly 
sanctuary  to  shed  upon  his  disciples  the  blessings  of  his 
mediation,  the  Jews  were  left  in  total  darkness,  to  continue 
their  useless  sacrifices  and  offerings.  The  ministration  of 
types  and  shadows  had  ceased.  That  door  by  which  men 
had  formerly  found  access  to  God,  was  no  longer  open.  The 
Jews  had  refused  to  seek  him  in  the  only  way  whereby  he 
could  then  be  found,  through  the  ministration  in  the  sanct- 
uary in  Heaven.  Therefore  they  found  no  communion 
with  God.  To  them  the  door  was  shut  They  had  no 
knowledge  of  Christ  as  the  true  sacrifice  and  the  only  medi- 
ator before  God ;  hence  they  could  not  receive  the  benefits 
of  his  mediation. 

The  condition  of  the  unbelieving  Jews  illustrates  the  con- 

'  Rev.  3:7,8. 


77V  TEE  HOLY  OF  HOLIES.  481 


jdtion  of  the  careless  and  unbelieving  among  professed  Chris- 
tians, who  are  willingly  ignorant  of  the  work  of  our  merci- 
ful High  Priest,  hi  the  typical  service,  when  the  high 
priest  entered  the  most  holy  place,  all  Israel  were  required 
<<>  gather  about  the  sanctuary,  and  in  the  most  solemn  man- 
ner humble  their  souls  before  God,  that  they  might  receive 
the  pardon  of  their  sins,  and  not  be  cut  off  from  the  con- 
gregation. How  much  more  essential  in  this  antitypical 
<lay  of  atonement  that  we  understand  the  work  of  our  High 
Priest,  and  know  what  duties  are  required  of  us. 

Men  cannot  with  impunity  reject  the  warnings  which 
God  in  mercy  sends  them.  A  message  was  sent  from 
Heaven  to  the  world  in  Noah's  day,  and  their  salvation 
depended  upon  the  manner  in  which  they  treated  that  mes- 
sage. Because  they  rejected  the  warning,  the  Spirit  of  God 
was  withdrawn  from  the  sinful  race,  and  they  perished  in 
the  waters  of  the  flood.  In  the  time  of  Abraham,  mercy 
ceased  to  plead  with  the  guilty  inhabitants  of  Sodom,  and  all 
but  Lot  with  his  wife  and  two  daughters  were  consumed  by 
the  fire  sent  down  from  heaven.  So  in  the  days  of  Christ. 
The  Son  of  God  declared  to  the  unbelieving  Jews  of  that 
generation,  "Your  house  is  left  unto  you  desolate."1  Look- 
ing clown  to  the  last  days,  the  same  infinite  power  declares, 
concerning  those  who  "received  not  the  love  of  the  truth, 
that  they  might  be  saved,"  "For  this  cause  God  shall  send 
them  strong  delusion,  that  they  should  believe  a  lie;  that 
they  all  might  be  damned  who  believed  not  the  truth,  but 
had  pleasure  in  unrighteousness."2  As  they  reject  the 
teachings  of  his  Word,  God  withdraws  his  Spirit,  and  leaves 
them  to  the  deceptions  which  they  love. 

But  Christ  still  intercedes  in  man's  behalf,  and  light  will 
be  given  to  those  who  seek  it.  Though  this  was  not  at  first 
understood  by  Adventists,  it  was  afterward  made  plain,  as 
the  scriptures  which  define  their  true  position  began  to  open 
before  them. 

1  Matt.  23  :  38.  -  '2  Thess.  2  :  10-12. 

32 


432  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

The  passing  of  the  time  in  1844  was  followed  by  a  period 
of  great  trial  to  those  who  still  held  the  Advent  faith. 
Their  only  relief,  so  far  as  ascertaining  their  true  "position 
was1  concerned,  was  the  light  which  directed  their  minds  to 
the  sanctuary  above.  Some  renounced  their  faith  in  their 
former  reckoning  of  the  prophetic  periods,  and  ascribed  to 
human  or  Satanic  agencies  the  powerful  influence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  which  had  attended  the  Advent  movement. 
Another  class  firmly  held  that  the  Lord  had  led  them  in 
their  past  experience;  and  as  they  waited  and  watched  and 
prayed  to  know  the  will  of  God,  they  saw  that  their  great 
High  Priest  had  entered  upon  another  work  of  ministration, 
and,  following  him  by  faith,  they  were  led  to  see  also  the 
closing  work  of  the  church.  They  had  a  clearer  under- 
standing of  the  first  and  second  angels'  messages,  and  were 
prepared  to  receive  and  give  to  the  world  the  solemn  warn- 
ing of  the  third  angel  of  Revelation  14. 


CHAPTER    XXV. 


GOD'S    LAW   IMMUTABLE. 

"THE  temple  of  God  was  opened  in  Heaven,  and  there 
was  seen  in  his  temple  the  ark  of  his  testament."1  The  ark 
of  God's  testament  is  in  the  holy  of  holies,  the  second  apart- 
ment of  the  sanctuary.  In  the  ministration  of  the  earthly 
tabernacle,  which  served  "unto  the  example  and  shadow  of 
heavenly  things,"  this  apartment  was  opened  only  upon  the 
great  day  of  atonement,  for  the  cleansing  of  the  sanctuary. 
Therefore  the  announcement  that  the  temple  of  God  was 
opened  in  Heaven,  and  the  ark  of  his  testament  was  seen, 
points  to  the  opening  of  the  most  holy  place  of  the  heavenly 
sanctuary,  in  1844,  as  Christ  entered  there  to  perform  the 
closing  work  of  the  atonement.  Those  who  by  faith  followed 
their  great  High  Priest,  as  he  entered  upon  his  ministry  in 
the  most  holy  place,  beheld  the  ark  of  his  testament.  As 
they  had  studied  the  subject  of  the  sanctuary,  they  had 
come  to  understand  the  Saviour's  change  of  ministration, 
and  they  saw  that  he  was  now  officiating  before  the  ark  of 
God,  pleading  his  blood  in  behalf  of  sinners. 

The  ark  in  the  tabernacle  on  earth  contained  the  two 
tables  of  stone,  upon  which  were  inscribed  the  precepts  of 
the  law  of  God.  The  ark  was  merely  a  receptacle  for  the 
tables  of  the  law,  and  the  presence  of  these  divine  precepts 
gave  to  it  its  value  and  sacredness.  When  the  temple  of  God 
was  opened  in  Heaven,  the  ark  of  his  testament  was  seen. 
Within  the  holy  of  holies,  in  the  sanctuary  in  Heaven,  the 
divine  law  is  sacredly  enshrined, — the  law  that  was  spoken 
by  God  himself  amid  the  thunders  of  Sinai,  and  written 
with  his  own  linger  on  the  tables  of  stone. 

.  11  :19. 

(433, 


434  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

The  law  of  (rod  in  the  sanctuary  in  Heaven  is  the  great 
original,  of  which  (lie  precepts  inscribed  upon  the  tables  of 

stone,  and  recorded  by  Moses  in  the  Pentateuch,  were  an 
unerring  transcript.  Those  who  arrived  at  an  understand- 
ing of  this  important  point,  were  thus  led  to  see  the  sacred, 
unchanging  character  of  the  divine  law.  They  saw,  as 
never  hefore,  the  force  of  the  Saviour's  words,  "  Till  heaven 
and  earth  pass,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall  in  nowise  pass 
from  the  law."1  The  law  of  (lod,  heing  a  revelation  of  his 
will,  a  transcript  of  his  character,  must  forever  endure,  "as  a 
faithful  witness  in  Heaven."  Not  one  command  has  heen 
annulled;  not  a  jot  or  tittle  has  heen  changed.  Says  the 
psalmist :  "  Forever,  <)  Lord,  thy  word  is  settled  in  Heaven.'' 
"All  his  commandments  are  sure.  They  stand  fast  forever 
and  ever."" 

In  the  very  bosom  of  the  decalogue  is  the  fourth  com- 
mandment, as  it  was  first  proclaimed:  "Remember  the  Sab- 
bath day,  to  keep  it  holy.  Six  days  shalt  thou  labor,  and  do 
all  thy  work;  but  the  seventh  day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the 
Lord  thy  (lod;  in  it  thou  shalt  not  do  any  work,  thou,  nor 
thy  son,  nor  thy  daughter,  thy  man-servant,  nor  thy  maid- 
servant, nor  thy  cattle,  nor  thy  stranger  that  is  within  thy 
gates:  for  in  six  days  the  Lord  made  heaven  and  earth,  the 
sea,  and  all  that  in  them  is,  and  rested  the  seventh  day; 
wherefore  the  Lord  blessed  the  Sabbath  day,  and  hallowed 
it."3 

^The  Spirit  of  ( }od  impressed  the  hearts  of  those  students 
of  his  Word.  The  conviction  was  urged  upon  them,  that, 
they  had  ignorantly  transgressed  this  precept  by  disregard  - 
ing  the  Creator's  rest-day.  They  began  to  examine  the  rea- 
sons for  observing  the  first  day  of  the  week  instead  of  the 
day  which  (lod  had  sanctified.  They  could  find  no  evi- 
dence in  the  Scriptures  that  the  fourth  commandment  had 
been  abolished,  or  that  the  Sabhaih  had  been  changed;  the 
Messing  which  first  hallowed  the  seventh  day  had  never 

1  Matt.  •")  :  I  S.  I'       1  I  !>  :  tt»  ;   1 1 1  :  7,  8.  3  Kx.   20  : 8-11. 


GOD'S  LA  Jf  IMMrTARLE.  435 


been  removed.  They  had  been  honestly  seeking  to  know 
and  to  do  God's  will;  now,  as  they  saw  themselves  trans- 
gressors of  his  law,  sorrow  tilled  their  hearts,  and  they 
manifested  their  loyalty  to  God  by  keeping  his  Sabbath 
holy. 

Many  and  earnest  were  the  efforts  made  to  overthrow  their 
faith.  None  could  fail  to  see  that  if  the  earthly  sanctuarv 
was  a  figure  or  pattern  of  the  heavenly,  the  Li\v  deposited 
in  the  ark  on  earth  was  an  exact  transcript  of  the  law  in 
the  ark  in  Heaven;  and  that  an  acceptance  of  the  truth 
concerning  the  heavenly  sanctuary  involved  an  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  claims  of  God's  law,  and  the  obligation  of  the 
Sabbath  of  the  fourth  commandment.  Here  was  the  secret 
of  the  bitter  and  determined  opposition  to  the  harmonious 
exposition  of  the  Scriptures  that  revealed  the  ministration  of 
Christ  in  the  heavenly  sanctuary.  Men  sought  to  close  the 
door  which  God  had  opened,  and  to  open  the  door  which  lie 
had  closed.  But  "He  that  openeth,  and  no  man  shutteth; 
and  shutteth,  and  no  man  openeth,"  had  declared,  "Behold, 
I  have  set  before  thee  an  open  door,  and  no  man  can  shut 
it."1  Christ  had  opened  the  door,  or  ministration,  of  the 
most  holy  place,  light  was  shining  from  that  open  door  of 
the  sanctuary  in  Heaven,  and  the  fourth  commandment  was 
shown  to  be  included  in  the  law  which  is  there  enshrined; 
what  God  had  established,  no  man  could  overthrow. 

Those  who  had  accepted  the  light  concerning  the  media- 
tion of  Christ  and  the  perpetuity  of  the  law  of  God,  found 
that  these  were  the  truths  presented  in  "Revelation  14.  The 
messages  of  this  chapter  constitute  a  threefold  warning,8 
which  is  to  prepare  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  for  the 
Lord's  second  coming.  The  announcement,  "  The  hour  of 
his  Judgment  is  come,"  points  to  the  closing  work  of 
Christ's  ministration  for  the  salvation  of  men.  It  heralds 
a  truth  which  must  be  proclaimed  until  the  Saviour's  in- 
tercession shall  cease,  and  he  shall  return  to  the  earth  to 
1  .Rev.  3  :  7,  8.  2See  Appendix,  Note  8. 


436  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


take  his  people  to  himself.  The  work  of  judgment  which 
began  in  1844,  must  continue  until  the  cases  of  all  are 
decided,  both  of  the  living  and  the  dead ;  hence  it  will  extend 
to  the  close  of  human  probation.  That  men  may  be  pre- 
pared to  stand  in  the  Judgment,  the  message  commands 
them  to  "fear  God,  and  give  glory  to  him,"  "and  worship 
him  that  made  heaven,  and  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the 
fountains  of  waters."  The  result  of  an  acceptance  of  these 
messages  is  given  in  the  words,  "  Here  are  they  that  keep 
the  commandments  of  God,  and  the  faith  of  Jesus."  In 
order  to  be  prepared  for  the  Judgment,  it  is  necessary  that 
men  should  keep  the  law  of  God.  That  law  will  be  the 
standard  of  character  in  the  Judgment.  The  apostle  Paul 
declares,  "As  many  as  have  sinned  in  the  law  shall  be 
judged  by  the  law;  ...  in  the  day  when  God  shall  judge 
the  secrets  of  men  by  Jesus.  Christ."  And  he  says  that  "the 
doers  of  the  law  shall  be  justified."1  Faith  is  essential  in 
order  to  the  keeping  of  the  law  of  God;  for  "without  faith 
it  is  impossible  to  please  him."  And  "  whatsoever  is  not  of 
faith  is  sin." 2 

By  the  first  angel,  men  are  called  upon  to  "fear  God,  and 
give  glory  to  him,"  and  to  worship  him  as  the  Creator  of 
the  heavens  and  the  earth.  In  order  to  do  this,  they  must 
obey  his  law.  Says  the  wise  man,  "Fear  God,  and  keep  his 
commandments;  for  this  is  the  whole  duty  of  man.  "J  \Vith- 
out  obedience  to  his  commandments,  no  worship  can  be 
pleasing  to  God.  "This  is  the  love  of  God,  that  we  keep 
his  commandments."  "He  that  turneth  away  his  ear  from 
tearing  the  law,  even  his  prayer  shall  be  abomination."4 

The  duty  to  worship  God  is  based  upon  the  fact  that  he  is 
the  Creator,  and  that  to  him  all  other  beings  owe  their  exist- 
ence. And  wherever,  in  the  Bible,  his  claim  to  reverence 
and  worship,  above  the  gods  of  the  heathen,  is  presented, 
there  is  cited  the  evidence  of  his  creative  power.  "  All  the 

Utom.  2  : 12-16.  2  Heb.  11:6;  Rom.  14  :  23. 

3  Eccl.  12  :  13.  4  1  John  5  :  3  ;    1'rov.  28  :  9. 


GOD'S  LA  W  IMMrTA  ULE.  487 

gods  of  the  nations  are  idols;  but  the  Lord  made  the 
heavens."1  "To  whom  then  will  ye  liken  me,  or  shall  I 
be  equal  ?  saith  the  Holy  One.  Lift  up  your  eyes  on  high, 
and  behold  who  hath  created  these  things."  "Thus  saith 
the  Lord  that  created  the  heavens;  God  himself  that 
formed  the  earth  and  made  it;  .  .  .  I  am  Jehovah; 
and  there  is  none  else."2  Says  the  psalmist,  "Know  ye  that 
Jehovah,  he  is  God ;  it  is  he  that  hath  made  us,  and  not  we 
ourselves."  "  O  come,  let  us  worship  and  bow  down,  let  us 
kneel  before  the  Lord  our  Maker."3  And  the  holy  beings 
who  worship  God  in  Heaven  state,  as  the  reason  why  their 
homage  is  due  to  him,  "  Thou  art  worthy,  0  Lord,  to  receive 
glory  and  honor  and  power;  for  thou  hast  created  all 
things." 4 

In  Revelation  14,  men  are  called  upon  to  worship  the  Cre- 
ator, and  the  prophecy  brings  to  view  a  class  that,  as  the  result 
of  the  threefold  message,  are  keeping  the  commandments  of 
God.  One  of  these  commandments  points  directly  to  God  as 
the  Creator.  The  fourth  precept  declares:  "The  seventh 
day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord  thy  God.  .  .  .  For  in 
six  days  the  Lord  made  heaven  and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all 
that  in  them  is,  and  rested  the  seventh  day;  wherefore  the 
Lord  blessed  the  Sabbath  day,  and  hallowed  it." 5  Concern- 
ing the  Sabbath,  the  Lord  .says,  further,  that  it  is  "a  sign, 
.  .  .  that  ye  may  know  that  I  am  the  Lord  your  God." 6 
And  the  reason  given  is,  "For  in  six  days  the  Lord  made 
heaven  and  earth,  and  on  the  seventh  day  he  rested,  and 
was  refreshed." 7 

"  The  importance  of  the  Sabbath  as  the  memorial  of  cre- 
ation is  that  it  keeps  ever  present  the  true  reason  why 
worship  is  due  to  God,"  because  he  is  the  Creator,  and  we  his 
creatures.  "  The  Sabbath  therefore  lies  at  the  very  founda- 
tion of  divine  worship;  for  it  teaches  this  great  truth  in  the 
most  impressive  manner,  and  no  other  institution  does  this. 

1  Ps.  96  :  5.  2  Isa.  40  :  25,  26;  43  :  18.  3  Ps.  FO :  3;  95  : 6. 

*  Rev.  4:11.         5Ex.  20:10,  11.  6Eze.  20:20. 

'Ex.  31  :17. 


438  Tin:  On  EAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  true  ground  of  divine  worship,  not  of  that  on  the- 
seventh  day  merely,  but  of  all  worship,  is  found  in  the 
distinction  between  the  Creator  and  his  creatures.  This 
great  fact  can  never  become  obsolete,  and  must  never  bo 
forgotten."  It  was  to  keep  this  truth  ever  before  the  minds 
of  men,  that  God  instituted  the  Sabbath  in  Eden;  and  so 
long  as  the  fact  that  he  is  our  Creator  continues  to  be  a 
.  reason  why  we  should  worship  him,  so  long  the  Sabbath  will 
continue  as  its  sign  and  memorial.  Had  the  Sabbath  been 
universally  kept,  man's  thoughts  and  affections  would  have 
been  led  to  the  Creator  as  the  object  of  reverence  and  wor- 
ship, and  there  would  never  have  been  an  idolater,  an 
atheist,  or  an  infidel.  The  keeping  of  the  Sabbath  is  a  sign 
of  loyalty  to  the  true  God,  "him  that  made  heaven  and 
earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the  fountains  of  waters."  It  follows 
that  the  message  which  commands  men  to  worship  God 
and  keep  his  commandments,  will  especially  call  upon 
them  to  keep  the  fourth  commandment. 

In  contrast  to  those  who  keep  the  commandments  of 
God  and  have  the  faith  of  Jesus,  the  third  angel  points 
to  another  class,  against  whose  errors  a  solemn  and 
fearful  warning  is  uttered:  "If  any  man  worship  the  beast 
and  his  image,  and  receive  his  mark  in  his  forehead,  or  in 
his  hand,  the  same  shall  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of 
God." l  A  correct  interpretation  of  the  symbols  employed  is 
necessary  to  an  understanding  of  this  message.  What  is  rep- 
resented by  the  beast,  the  image,  the  mark? 

The  line  of  prophecy  in  which  these  symbols  are  found, 
begins  with  Revelation  12,  with  the  dragon  that  sought  to  de- 
stroy Christ  at  his  birth.  The  dragon  is  said  to  be  Satan ; 2  he 
it  was  that  moved  upon  Herod  to  put  the  Saviour  to  death. 
But  the  chief  agent  of  Satan  in  making  war  upon  Christ  and 
his  people  during  the  first  centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  was 
the  Roman  Empire,  in  which  paganism  was  the  prevailing 
religion.  Thus  while  the  dragon,  primarily,  represents  Satan3 
it  is,  in  a  secondary  sense,  a  symbol  of  pagan  Rome. 

-Rev.  14:9,  10  2Rev.  12:9. 


GOD'S  LA  W  JMMrTABLE.  439 


In  chapter  13  l  is  described  another  beast,  "like  unto  a 
leopard/'  to  which  the  dragon  gave  "  his  power,  and  his  seat, 
and  great  authority."  .This  symbol,  as  most  Protestants 
have  believed,  represents  the  papacy,  which  succeeded  to 
the  power  and  seat  and  authority  once  possessed  by  the 
ancient  Ivonian  Empire.  Of  the  leopard-like  beast  it  is 
declared:  "There  was  given  unto  him  a  mouth  speaking 
great  things  and  blasphemies.  .  .  .  And  he  opened  his 
mouth  in  blasphemy  against  God,  to  blaspheme  his  name, 
and  his  tabernacle,  and  them  that  dwell  in  Heaven.  And 
it  was  given  unto  him  to  make  war  with  the  saints,  and  to 
overcome  them ;  and  power  was  given  him  over  all  kindreds, 
and  tongues,  and  nations."  This  prophecy,  which  is  nearly 
identical  with  the  description  of  the  little  horn  of  Daniel  7, 
unquestionably  points  to  the  papacy. 

"Power  was  given  unto  him  to  continue  forty  and  two 
months."  And,  says  the  prophet,  "  I  saw  one  of  his  heads  as 
it  were  wounded  to  death."  And  again,  "  He  that  leadeth 
into  captivity  shall  go  into  captivity;  he  that  killeth  with  the 
sword  must  be  killed  with  the  sword."  The  forty  and  two 
months  are  the  same  as  the  "  time  and  times  and  the  divid- 
ing of  time,"  three  years  and  a  half,  or  1260  days,  of  Daniel 
7, — the  time  during  which  the  papal  power  was  to  oppress 
God's  people.  This  period,  as  stated  in  preceding  chapters, 
began  with  the  establishment  of  the  papacy,  A.  D.  538,  and 
terminated  in  1798.  At  that  time,  when  the  papacy  was 
abolished  and  the  pope  made  captive  by  the  French  army, 
the  papal  power  received  its  deadly  wound,  and  the  predic- 
tion was  fulfilled,  "He  that  leadeth  into  captivity  shall  go 
into  captivity  " 

At  this  point  another  symbol  is  introduced.  Says  the 
prophet,  "  I  beheld  another  beast  coming  up  out  of  the  earth; 
and  he  had  two  horns  like  a  lamb."''  Both  the  appearance 
of  this  beast  and  the  manner  of  its  rise  indicate  that  the 
nation  which  it  represents  is  unlike  those  presented  under 

1  Verses  1-10.  2Rev.  13:  11. 


440  TJTK  G U HA  T  ( 'OX TR O  1  'KRSY. 


the  preceding  symbols.  The  great  kingdoms  that  have 
ruled  the  world  were  presented  to  the  prophet  Daniel  as 
beasts  of  prey,  rising  when  the  "  four  winds  of  the  heaven 
strove  upon  the  great  sea."1  In  Revelation  17,  an  angel 
explained  that  waters  represent  "peoples,  and  multitudes, 
and  nations,  and  tongues." a  Winds  are  a  symbol  of  strife. 
The  four  winds  of  heaven  striving  upon  the  great  sea,  repre- 
sent the  terrible  scenes  of  conquest  and  revolution  by  which 
kingdoms  have  attained  to  power.. 

But  the  beast  with  lamb-like  horns  was  seen  "coming  up 
out  of  the  earth."  Instead  of  overthrowing  other  powers  to 
establish  itself,  the  nation  thus  represented  must  arise  in 
territory  previously  unoccupied,  and  grow  up  gradually  and 
peacefully.  It  could  not,  then,  arise  among  the  crowded 
and  struggling  nationalities  of  the  Old  World, — that  turbu- 
lent sea  of  "peoples,  and  multitudes,  and  nations,  and 
tongues."  It  must  be  sought  in  the  Western  Continent. 

What  nation  of  the  New' World  was  in  1798  rising  into 
power,  giving  promise  of  strength  and  greatness,  and  attract- 
ing the  attention  of  the  world?  The  application  of  the 
symbol  admits  of  no  question.  One  nation,  and  only  one, 
meets  the  specifications  of  this  prophecy;  it  points  unmis- 
takably to  the  United  States  of  America.  Again  and  again 
the  thought,  almost  the  exact  words,  of  the  sacred  writer 
have  been  unconsciously  employed  by  the  orator  and  the 
historian  in  describing  the  rise  and  growth  of  this  nation. 
The  beast  was  seen  "coming  up  out  of  the  earth;"  and, 
according  to  the  translators,  the  word  here  rendered  "com- 
ing up"  literally  signifies  to  ".grow  or  spring  up  as  a 
plant."  And,  as  we  have  seen,  the  nation  must  arise  in 
territory  previously  unoccupied.  A  prominent  writer,  de.- 
scribing  the  rise  of  the  United  States,  speaks  of  "  the  mystery 
of  her  Doming  forth  from  vacancy"  and  says,  "Like  a  silent 
seed  we  grew  into  empire."3  A  European  journal  in  1S,~>0 

'Dan.  7  :2.  2Rev.  17  :  15. 

3Townsend,  in  "The  New  World  Compared  with  the  Old,"  p.  462. 


GOD'S  LA  W  JMMTTA  KLE.  441 


spoke  of  the  United  States  as  a  wonderful  empire,  which  was 
"emerging,"  and  "amid  the  silence  of  the  earth  daily  adding 
to  its  power  and  pride."1  Edward  Everett,  in  an  oration  on 
the  Pilgrim  founders  of  this  nation  said:  "Did  they  look 
for  a  retired  spot,  inoffensive  from  its  obscurity,  safe  in 
its  remoteness  from  the  haunts  of  despots,  where  the  little 
church  of  Leyden  might  enjoy  freedom  of  conscience? 
Behold  the  mighty  regions  over  which,  in  peaceful  conquest, 
.  .  .  they  have  borne  the  banners  of  the  cross." 

"And  he  had  two  horns  like  a  lamb."  The  lamb-like 
horns  indicate  youth,  innocence,  and  gentleness,  fitly  repre- 
senting the  character  of  the  United  States  when  presented 
to  the  prophet  as  "coming  up"  in  1798.  The  Christian 
exiles  who  first  fled  to  America,  sought  an  asylum  from  royal 
oppression  and  priestly  intolerance,  and  they  determined  to 
establish  a  government  upon  the  broad  foundation  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty.  The  Declaration  of  Independence 
sets  forth  the  great  truth  that  "all  men  are  created  equal," 
and  endowed  with  the  inalienable  right  to  "life,  liberty, 
and  the  pursuit  of  happiness."  And  the  Constitution  guar- 
antees to  the  people  the  right  of  self-government,  providing 
that  representatives  elected  by  the  popular  vote  shall 
enact  and  administer  the  laws.  Freedom  of  religious  faith 
was  also  granted,  every  man  being  permitted  to  worship 
God  according  to  the  dictates  of  his  conscience.  Republican- 
ism and  Protestantism  became  the  fundamental  principles 
of  the  nation.  These  principles  are  the  secret  of  its  power 
and  prosperity.  The  oppressed  and  down-trodden  through- 
out Christendom  have  turned  to  this  land  with  interest  and 
hope.  Millions  have  sought  its  shores,  and  the  United 
States  has  risen  to  a  place  among  the  most  powerml  nations 
of  the  earth. 

But  the  beast  with  lamb-like  horns  "spake  as  a  dragon. 
And  he  exerciseth  all  the  power  of  the  first  beast  before  him, 
and  cause th  the  earth  and  them  which  dwell  therein  to 
worship  the  first  beast,  whose  deadly  wound  was  healed,  . 

1  The  Dublin  Nation. 


442  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


.  .  saying  to  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  that  they 
should  make  an  image  to  the  beast,  which  had  the  wound 
by  a  sword,  and  did  live."1 

The  lamb-like  horns  and  dragon  voice  of  the  symbol 
point  to  a  striking  contradiction  between  the  professions  and 
the  practice  of  the  nation  thus  represented.  The  "  speaking  " 
of  the  nation  is  the  action  of  its  legislative  and  judicial 
authorities.  By  such  action  it  will  give  the  lie  to  those  lib- 
eral and  peaceful  principles  which  it  has  put  forth  as  the 
foundation  of  its  policy.  The  prediction  that  it  will  speak 
"as  a  dragon,"  and  exercise  "all  the  power  of  the  first  beast," 
plainly  foretells  a  development  of  the  spirit  of  intolerance 
and  persecution  that  was  manifested  by  the  nations  repre- 
sented by  the  dragon  and  the  leopard-like  beast.  And  the 
statement  that  the  beast  with  two  horns  "  causeth  the  earth 
and  them  which  dwell  therein  to  worship  the  first  beast/' 
indicates  that  the  authority  of  this  nation  is  to  be  exercised 
in  enforcing  some  observance  which  shall  be  an  act  of  hom- 
age to  the  papacy. 

Such  action  would  be  directly  contrary  to  the  principles 
of  this  government,  to  the  genius  of  its  free  institutions,  to 
the  direct  and  solemn  avowals  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, and  to  the  Constitution.  The  founders  of  the 
nation  wisely  sought  to  guard  against  the  employment  of 
secular  power' on  the  part  of  the  church,  with  its  inevitable 
result — intolerance  and  persecution..  The  Constitution  pro- 
vides that  "Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  estab- 
lishment of  religion,  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  thereof," 
and  that  "no  religious  test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a  quali- 
fication to  any  office  of  public  trust  under  the  United  States." 
Only  in  flagrant  violation  of  these  safeguards  to  the  nation's 
liberty,  can  any  religious  observance  be  enforced  by  civil 
authority.  But  the  inconsistency  of  such  action  is  no  greater 
than  is  represented  in  the  symbol.  It  is  the  beast  with 
lamb-like  horns — in  profession  pure,  gentle,  and  harmless— 
that  speaks  as  a  dragon. 

13:11-14. 


GOD'S  LA  W  IMMUTABLE.  443 


"Saying  to  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  that  they  should 
make  an  image  to  the  beast."  Here  is  clearly  presented  a 
form  of  government  in  which  the  legislative  power  rests  with 
the  people;  a  most  striking  evidence  that  the  United  States 
is  the  nation  denoted  in  the  prophecy. 

But  what  is  the  "image  to  the  beast"?  and  how  is  it  to  be 
formed?  The  image  is  made  by  the  two-horned  beast,  and 
is  an  image  to  the  first  beast.  It  is  also  called  an  image  of  the 
beast.  Then  to  learn  what  the  image  is  like,  and  how  it  is  to 
be  formed,  we  must  study  the  characteristics  of  the  beast  itself, 
— the  papacy.  When  the  early  church  became  corrupted  by 
departing  from  the  simplicity  of  the  gospel,  and  accepting 
heathen  rites  and  customs,  she  lost  the  Spirit  and  power  of 
God;  and  in  order  to  control  the  consciences  of  the  people  she 
sought  the  support  of  the  secular  power.  The  result  was  the 
papacy,  a  church  that  controlled  the  power  of  the  State,  and 
employed  it  to  further  her  own  ends,  especially  for  the  pun- 
ishment of  "  heresy."  In  order  for  the  United  States  to  form 
an  image  of  the  beast,  the  religious  power  must  so  control 
the  civil  government  that  the  authority  of  the  State  will 
also  be  employed  by  the  church  to  accomplish  her  own 
ends. 

Whenever  the  church  has  obtained  secular  power,  she  has 
employed  it  to  punish  dissent  from  her  doctrines.  Protest- 
ant churches  that  have  followed  in  the  steps  of  Rome  by 
forming  alliance'  with  worldly  powers,  have  manifested  a 
similar  desire  to  restrict  liberty  of  conscience.  An  example 
of  this  is  given  in  the  long-continued  persecution  of  dis- 
senters by  the  Church  of  England.  During  the  sixteenth 
and  seventeenth  ce'nturies,  thousands  of  non-conformist 
ministers  were  forced  to  leave  their  churches,  and  many, 
both  of  pastors  and  people,  were  subjected  to  fine,  imprison- 
ment, torture,  and  martyrdom. 

It  was  apostasy  that  led  the  early  church  to, seek  the  aid  of 
th(M-ivil  government,  and  this  prepared  the  way  for  tluMlcvol- 
opment  of  the  papacy, — the  beast.  Said  Paul,  There  shall 


444  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

"come  a  falling  away,  .  .  .  and  that  man  ot  sin.  be 
revealed."1  So  apostasy  in  the  church  will  prepare  the  way 
for  the  image  to  the  beast.  And  the  Bible  declares  that 
before  the  coming  of  the  Lord  there  will  exist  a  state  of 
religious  declension  similar  to  that  in  the  first  centuries. 
"  In  the  last  days  perilous  times  shall  come.  For  men  shall 
be  lovers  of  their  own  selves,  covetous,  boasters,  proud,  blas- 
phemers, disobedient  to  parents,  unthankful,  unholy,  with- 
out natural  affection,  trucebreakers,  false  accusers,  inconti- 
nent, fierce,  despiaers  of  those  that  are  good,  traitors,  heady, 
highminded,  lovers  of  pleasures  more  than  lovers  of  God;  liarim) 
a  form  of  godliness,  but  denying  the  power  thereof."'2  "  Now 
the  Spirit  speaketh  expressly,  that  in  the  latter  times  some 
shall  depart  from  the  faith,  giving  heed  to  seducing  spirits, 
and  doctrines  of  devils."3  Satan  will  work  "with  all  power 
and  signs  and  lying  wonders,  and  with  all  deceivablcness 
of  unrighteousness."  And  all  that  "received  not  the  love  of 
the  truth,  that  they  might  be  saved,"  will  be  left  to  accept 
"strong  delusion,  that  they  should  believe  a  lie."*  AVIien 
tli is  state  of  ungodliness  shall  be  reached,  the  same  results 
will  follow  as  in  the  first  centuries. 

The  wide  diversity  of  belief  in  the  Protestant  churches  is 
regarded  by  many  as  decisive  proof  that  no  effort  to  secure 
a  forced  uniformity  can  ever  be  made.  But  there  has  been 
for  years,  in  churches  of  the  Protestant  faith,  a  strong  and 
growing  sentiment  in  favor  of  a  union  based  upon  common 
points  of  doctrine.  To  secure  such  a  union,  the  discussion 
of  subjects  upon  which  all  were  not  agreed — however  impor- 
tant they  might  be  from  a  Bible  standpoint — must  necessa- 
rily be  waived. 

Charles  Beecher,  in  a  sermon  in  the  year  L 846,  declared 
that  the  ministry  of  "ihe  evangelical  Protestant  denomina- 
tions" is  "not  only  formed  all  the  way  up  under  a  tremen- 
dous pressure  of  merely  human  fear,  but  they  live,  and 
move,  and  breathe  in  a  state  of  things  radically  corrupt,  and 

»2  Thess.  2:3.     *  2  Tim.  3  : 1-5.     3 1  Tim.  4:1.     4  2  Thess.  2:9-11. 


GOD'S  LA  W  IMMUTABLE.  445 

appealing  every  hour  to  every  baser  element  of  their  nature 
to  hush  up  the  truth,  and  bow  the  knee  to  the  power  of  apos- 
tasy. Was  not  this  the  way  things  went  with  Rome?  Are 
we  not  living  her  life  over  again?  And  what  do  we  see  just 
ahead? — Another  general  council!  A  world's  convention! 
evangelical  alliance,  and  universal  creed! "  When  this  shall 
be  gained,  then,  in  the  effort  to  secure  complete  uniformity, 
it  will  be  only  a  step  to  the  resort  to  force. 

When  the  leading  churches  of  the  United  States,  uniting 
upon  such  points  of  doctrine  as  are  held  by  them  in  com- 
nion,  shall  influence  the  State  to  enforce  their  decrees  and 
to  sustain  their  institutions,  then  Protestant  America  will 
have  formed  an  image  of  the  Roman  hierarchy,  and  the 
infliction  of  civil  penalties  upon  dissenters  will  inevitably 
result. 

The  beast  with  two  horns  "  causeth  [commands]  all,  both 
small  and  great,  rich  and  poor,  free  and  bond,  to  receive  a 
mark  in  their  right  hand,  or  in  their  foreheads ;  and  that 
no  man  might  buy  or  sell,  save  he  that  had  the  mark,  or 
the  name  of  the  beast,  or  the  number  of  his  name." J  The 
third  angel's  warning  is,  "  If  any  man  worship  the  beast 
and  his  image,  and  receive  his  mark  in  his  forehead,  or  in 
his  hand,  the  same  shall  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of 
God."  "The  beast"  mentioned  in  this  message,  whose 
worship  is  enforced  by  the  two-horned  beast,  is  the  first, 
or  leopard-like  beast  of  Revelation  13, — the  papacy.  The 
"image  to  the  beast"  represents  that  form  of  apostate  Prot- 
estantism which  will  be  developed  when  the  Protestant 
churches  shall  seek  the  aid  of  the  civil  power  for  the  en- 
forcement of  their  dogmas.  The  "  mark  of  the  beast "  still 
remains  to  be  defined. 

After  the  warning  against  the  worship  of  the  beast  and 
his  image,  the  prophecy  declares,  "  Here  are  they  that  keep 
the  commandments  of  God,  and  the  faith  of  Jesus."  Since 
those  who  keep  God's  commandments  are  thus  placed  in 
contrast  with  those  that  worship  the  beast  and  his  image 

i  Rev.  13:16,  17. 


440  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


and  receive  his  murk,  it  follows  that  the  keeping  of  God's 
law,  on  the  one  hand,  and  its  violation,  on  the  other,  will 
make  the  distinction  between  the  worshipers  of  God  and 
the  worshipers  of  the  beast. 

The  special  characteristic  of  the  beast,  and  therefore  of 
his  image,  is  the  breaking  of  God's  commandments.  Says 
Daniel,  of  the  little  horn,  the  papacy,  "He  shall  think  to 
change  the  times  and  the  law." '  And  Paul  styled  the  same 
power  the  "  man  of  sin,"  who  was  to  exalt  himself  above 
God.  One  prophecy  is  a  complement  of  the  other.  Only 
by  changing  God's  law  could  the  papacy  exalt  itself  above 
God;  whoever  should  understandmgly  keep  the  law  as  thus 
changed  would  be  giving  supreme  honor  to  that  power  by 
which  the  change  was  made.  Such  an  act  of  obedience  to 
papal  laws  would  be  a  mark  of  allegiance  to  the  pope  in  the 
place  of  God. 

The  papacy  has  attempted  to  change  the  law  of  God. 
The  second  commandment,  forbidding  image  worship,  has 
been  dropped  from  the  law,  and  the  fourth  commandment 
has  been  so  changed  as  to  authorize  the  observance  of  the 
in  st  instead  of  the  seventh  day  as  the  Sabbath.  But  papists 
urge,  as  a  reason  for  omitting  the  second  commandment, 
that  it  is  unnecessary,  being  included  in  the  first,  and  that 
they  are  giving  the  law  exactly  as  God  designed  it  to  be 
understood.  This  cannot  be  the  change  foretold  by  tin- 
prophet.  An  intentional,  deliberate  change  is  presented  :"!!<• 
shall  think  to  change  the  times  and  the  law."  The  change  in 
the  fourth  commandment  exactly  fulfills  the  prophecy. 
For  this  the  only  authority  claimed  is  that  of  the  church. 
Here  the  papal  .power  openly  sets  itself  above  God. 

While  the  worshipers  of  God  will  be  especially  distin- 
guished by  their  regard  for  the  fourth  commandment, — 
since  this  is  the  sign  of  his  creative  power,  and  the  witness 
to  his  claim  upon  man's  reverence  and  I  mm  age. — the  wor- 
shipers of  the  beast  will  be  distinguished  bv  their  ellbrts  to 

tear  down  the  Creator's  memorial,  to  exalt   the  institution 

1  Pan.  7  :25,  Revised  Version. 


GOD'S  LA  W  IMMUTABLE.  447 


of  Rome.  It  was  in  behalf  of  the  Sunday,  that  popery  first 
asserted  its  arrogant  claims;1  and  its  first  resort  to  the  power 
of  the  State  was  to  compel  the  observance  of  Sunday  as  "  the 
Lord's  day/'  But  the  Bible  points  to  the  seventh  day,  and 
not  to  the  first,  as  the  Lord's  day.  Said  Christ,  "  The  Son 
of  man  is  Lord  also  of  the  Sabbath."  The  fourth  com- 
mandment declares,  "The  seventh  day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the 
Lord."  And  by  the  prophet  Isaiah  the  Lord  designates  it, 
"My  holy  day."' 

The  claim  so  often  put  forth,  that  Christ  changed  the 
Sabbath,  is  disproved  by  his  own  words.  In  his  sermon  on 
the  mount  he  said:  "Think  not  that  I  am  come  to 
destroy  the  law,  or  the  prophets ;  I  am  not  come  to  destroy, 
but  to  fulfill.  For  verily  I  say  unto  you,  Till  heaven  and 
earth  pass,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall  in  no  wise  pass  from 
the  law,  till  all  be  fulfilled.  Whosoever  therefore  shall  break 
one  of  these  least  commandments,  and  shall  teach  men  so, 
he  shall  be  called  the  least  in  the  kingdom  of  Heaven ;  but 
whosoever  shall  do  and  teach  them,  the  same  shall  be  called 
great  in  the  kingdom  of  Heaven."3 

It  is  a  fact  generally  admitted  by  Protestants,  that  the 
Scriptures  give  no  authority  for  the  change  of  the  Sab- 
bath. This  is  plainly  stated  in  publications  issued  by  the 
American  Tract  Society  and  the  American  Sunday-school 
Union.  One  of  these  works  acknowledges  "the  complete 
silence  of  the  New  Testament  so  far  as  any  explicit  com- 
mand for  the  Sabbath  [Sunday,  the  first  day  of  the  week] 
or  definite  rules  for  its  observance  are  concerned."  * 

Another  says:  "  Up  to  the  time  of  Christ's  death,  no  change 
had  been  made  in  the  day ; "  and, "  so  far  as  the  record  shows, 
they  [the  apostles]  did  not  give  any  explicit  command  en- 
joining the  abandonment  of  the  seventh-day  Sabbath,  and 
its  observance  on  the  first  day  of  the  week."5 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  9.     2  Mark  2  :  28;  Isa.  58  :  13.     3  Matt.  5  : 17-19. 
*"The  Abiding  Sabbath,"  p.  184,  a  $500  prize  essay. 
6"  The  Lord's  Day,"  pp.  185,  186,  a  $1,000  prize  essay, 
33 


44 8  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Roman  Catholics  acknowledge  that  the  change  of  the  Sab- 
bath was  made  by  their  church,  and  declare  that  Protestants, 
by  observing  the  Sunday,  arc  recogni/ing  her  power.  In  the 
"Catholic  Catechism  of  Christian  Religion;'  in  answer  to  a 
question  as  to  the  day  to  be  observed  in  obedience  to  the 
fourth  commandment,  this  statement  is  made :  "  During  the 
old  law,  Saturday  was  the  day  sanctified;  but  the  church, 
instructed  by  Jesus  Christ,  and  directed  by  the  Spirit  of  God, 
has  substituted  Sunday  for  Saturday ;  so  now  we  sanctify  the 
first,  not  the  seventh  day.  Sunday  means,  and  now  is,  the 
day  of  the  Lord." 

As  the  sign  of  the  authority  of  the  Catholic  Church,  papist 
writers  cite  "the  very  act  of  changing  the  Sabbath  into 
Sunday,  which  Protestants  allow  of  ...  because  by 
keeping  Sunday  strictly  they  acknowledge  the  church's 
power  to  ordain  feasts,  and  to  command  them  under  sin."1 
What  then  is  the  change  of  the  Sabbath,  but  the  sign  or 
mark  of  the  authority  of  the  Romish  Church — "the  mark  of 
the  beast"? 

The  Roman  Church  has  not  relinquished  her  claim  to 
supremacy ;  and  when  the  world  and  the  Protestant  churches 
accept  a  sabbath  of  her  creating,  while  they  reject  the  Bible 
Sabbath,  they  virtually  admit  this  assumption.  They  may 
claim  the  authority  of  tradition  and  of  the  Fathers  for  the 
change;  but  in  so  doing  they  ignore  the  very  principle 
which  separates  them  from  Rome, — that "  the  Bible,  and  the 
Bible  only,  is  the  religion  of  Protestants."  The  papist  can 
see  that  they  are  deceiving  themselves,  willingly  closing 
their  eyes  to  the  facts  in  the  case.  As  the  movement  for 
Sunday  enforcement  gains  favor,  he  rejoices,  feeling  assuivd 
that  it  will  eventually  bring  the  whole  Protestant  world 
under  the  banner  of  Rome. 

Romanists  declare  that  "the  observance  of  Sunday  by  the 
Protestants  is  an  hoiiia-v  tln-y  pay,  in  spile  of  themselves,  to 
the  authority  of  the  [Catholic]  Church."'  The  enforcement 

1  "  Abridgment  of  Christian  Doctrine." 

3"  Plain  Talk  about  Protestantism,"  p.  U13. 


GOD'S  LA  W  IMMUTABLE.  44J> 


of  Sunday-keeping  on  the  part  of  Protestant  churches  is  an 
enforcement  of  the  worship  of  the  papacy — of  the  beast. 
Those  who,  understanding  the  claims  of  the  fourth  com- 
mandment, choose  to  observe  the  false  instead  of  the  true 
Sabbath,  are  thereby  paying  homage  to  that  power  by  which 
alone  it  is  commanded.  But  in  the  very  act  of  enforcing  a 
religious  duty  by  secular  power,  the  churches  would  them- 
selves form  an  image  to  the  beast ;  hence  the  enforcement  of 
Sunday-keeping  in.  the  United  States  would  be  an  enforce- 
ment of  the  worship  of  the  beast  and  his  image. 

But  Christians  of  past  generations  observed  the  Sunday, 
supposing  that  in  so  doing  they  were  keeping  the  Bible  Sab- 
bath ;  and  there  are  now  true  Christians  in  every  church, 
not  excepting  the  Roman  Catholic  communion,  who  honestly 
believe  that  Sunday  is  the  Sabbath  of  divine  appointment. 
God  accepts  their  sincerity  of  purpose  and  their  integrity 
before  him.  But  when  Sunday  observance  shall  be  enforced 
by  law,  and  the  world  shall  be  enlightened  concerning  the 
obligation  of  the  true  Sabbath,  then  whoever  shall  transgress 
the  command  of  God,  to  obey  a  precept  which  has  no  higher 
authority  than  that  of  Rome,  will  thereby  honor  popery 
above  God.  He  is  paying  homage  to  Rome,,  and  to  the 
power  which  enforces  the  institution  ordained  by  Rome. 
He  is  worshiping  the  beast  and  his  image.  As  men  then 
reject  the  institution  which  God  has  declared  to  be  the  sign 
of  his  authority,  and  honor  in  its  stead  that  which  Rome  has 
chosen  as  the  token  of  her  supremacy,  they  will  thereby 
accept  the  sign  of  allegiance  to  Rome — "the  mark  of  the 
beast."  And  it  is  not  until  the  issue  is  thus  plainly  set 
before  the  people,  and  they  are  brought  to  choose  between 
the  commandments  of  God  and  the  commandments  of  men, 
that  those  who  continue  in  transgression  will  receive  "  the 
mark  of  the  beast." 

The  most  fearful  threatening  ever  addressed  to  mortals  is 
contained  in  the  third  angel's  message.  That  must  be  a 
terrible  sin  which  calls  down  the  wrath  of  God  unmingled 


460  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

with  mercy.  Men  are  not  to  be  left  in  darkness  concerning 
this  important  matter;  the  warning  against  this  sin  is  to  be 
given  to  the  world  before  the  visitation  of  God's  judgments, 
that  all  may  know  why  they  are  to  be  inflicted,  and  have 
opportunity  to  escape  them.  Prophecy  declares  that  the 
first  angel  would  make  his  announcement  to  "  every  nation, 
and  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people."  The  warning  of  the 
third  angel,  which  forms  a  part  of  the  same  threefold  mes- 
sage, is  to  be  no  less  widespread.  It  is  represented  in  the 
prophecy  as  proclaimed  with  a  loud  voice,  by  an  angel  flying 
in  the  midst  of  heaven;  and  it  will  command  the  attention 
of  the  world. 

In  the  issue  of  the  contest,  all  Christendom  will  be  divided 
into  two  great  classes, — those  who  keep  the  commandments 
of  God  and  the  faith  of  Jesus,  and  those  who  worship  the 
beast  and  his  image  and  receive  hie  mark,  /ilthough  church 
and  State  will  unite  their  power  to  compel  "  all,  both  small 
and  great,  rich  and  poor,  free  and  bond,"  to  receive  "the 
mark  of  the  beast,"1  yet  the  people  of  God  will  not  receive  it. 
The  prophet  of  Patmos  beholds  "them  that  had  gotten  the 
victory  over  the  beast,  and  over  his  image,  and  over  his  mark, 
and  ovei  the  number  of  his  name,  stand  on  the  sea  of  glass, 
having  the  harps  of  God,"  and  singing  the  song  of  Moses  and 
the  Lamb/ 

1  Rev.  13:16.  2Rev.  15:2,  3. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 


A  WORK  OF  REFORM. 

THE  work  of  Sabbath  reform  to  be  accomplished  in  the 
last  days  is  foretold  in  the  prophecy  of  Isaiah  :  "  Thus  saith 
the  Lord,  Keep  ye  judgment,  and  do  justice;  for  my  sal- 
vation is  near  to  come,  and  my  righteousness  to  be  revealed. 
Blessed  is  the  man  that  doeth  this,  and  the  son  of  man  that 
layeth  hold  on  it ;  that  keepeth  the  Sabbath  from  polluting 
it,  and  keepeth  his.  hand  from  doing  any  evil."  "  The  sons 
of  the  stranger,  that  join  themselves  to  the  Lord,  to  serve 
him,  and  to  love  the  name  of  the  Lord,  to  be  his  servants, 
every  one  that  keepeth  the  Sabbath  from  polluting  it,  and 
taketh  hold  of  my  covenant ;  even  them  will  I  bring  to  my 
holy  mountain,  and  make  them  joyful  in  my  house  of 
prayer." l 

These  words  apply  in  the  Christian  age,  as  is  shown  by 
the  context:  "The  Lord  God  which  gathereth  the  outcasts 
of  Israel  saith,  Yet  will  I  gather  others  to  him,  beside  those 
that  are  gathered  unto  him."2  Here  is  foreshadowed  the 
gathering  in  of  the  Gentiles  by  the  gospel.  And  upon  those 
who  then  honor  the  Sabbath,  a  blessing  is  pronounced. 
Thus  the  obligation  of  the  fourth  commandment  extends 
past  the  crucifixion,  resurrection,  and  ascension  of  Christ, 
to  the  time  when  his  servants  should  preach  to  all  nations 
the  message  of  glad  tidings. 

The  Lord  commands  by  the  same  prophet,  "  Bind  up  the 
testimony,  seal  the  lav»r  among  my  disciples." 3  The  seal  of 
God's  law  is  found  in  the  fourth  commandment.  This  only, 
of  all  the  ten,  brings  to  view  both  the  name  and  the  title  of 

1  Isa.  56  : 1,  2,  6,  7.         2  Isa.  56 : 8.         3  Isa.  8:10. 

(451) 


452  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  Lawgiver.  It  declares  him  to  be  the  Creator  of  the 
heavens  and  the  earth,  and  thus  shows  his  claim  to  rev- 
erence and  worship  above  all  others.  Aside  from  this  pre- 
cept, there  is  nothing  in  the  decalogue  to  show  by  whose 
authority  the  law  is  given.  When  the  Sabbath  was  changed 
by  the  papal  power,  the  seal  was  taken  from  the  law.  The 
disciples  of  Jesus  are  called  upon  to  restore  it,  by  exalting 
the  Sabbath  of  the  fourth  commandment  to  its  rightful 
position  as  the  Creator's  memorial  and  the  sign  of  his 
authority. 

"To  the  law  and  to  the  testimony/'  While  conflicting 
doctrines  and  theories  abound,  the  law  of  God  is  the  one 
unerring  rule  by  which  all  opinions,  doctrines,  and  theories 
are  to  be  tested.  Says  the  prophet,  "  If  they  speak  not 
according  to  this  word,  it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in 
them."1 

Again,  the  command  is  given,  "  Cry  aloud,  spare  not,  lift 
up  thy  voice  like  a  trumpet,  and  show  my  people  their 
transgression,  and  the  house  of  Jacob  their  sins."  It  is  not 
the  wicked  world,  but  those  whom  the  Lord  designates  as 
"  my  people,"  that  are  to  be  repro.ved  for  their  transgressions. 
He  declares  further,  "  Yet  they  seek  me  daily,  and  delight 
to  know  my  ways,  as  a  nation  that  did  righteousness,  and 
forsook  not  the  ordinance  of  their  God." 2  Here  is  brought 
to  view  a  class  who  think  themselves  righteous,  and  appear 
to  manifest  great  interest  in  the  service  of  God;  but  the 
stern  and  solemn  rebuke  of  the  Searcher  of  hearts  proves 
them  to  be  trampling  upon  the  divine  precepts. 

The  prophet  thus  points  out  the  ordinance  which  has 
been  forsaken:  "Thou  shalt  raise  up  the  foundations  of 
many  generations;  and  thou  shalt  be  called,  The  repairer 
of  the  breach,  The  restorer  of  paths  to  dwell  in.  If  thou 
turn  away  thy  foot  from  the  Sabbath,  from  doing  thy 
pleasure  on  my  holy  day  ;  an«l  call  the  Sabbath  a  delight, 
the  holy  of  the  Lord,  honorable;  and  shalt  honor  him,  not 

Usa.  8:20.  2Isa.  58:1,  2. 


A   WORK  OF  REFORM.  453 


doing  thine  own  ways,  nor  finding  thine  own  pleasure,  nor 
speaking  thine  own  words;  then  shalt  tliou  delight  thyself 
in  the  Lord."1  This  prophecy  also  applies  in  our  time. 
The  breach  was  made  in  the  law  of  God  when  the  Sabbath 
was  changed  by  the  Romish  power.  But  the  time  has  come 
for  that  divine  institution  to  be  restored.  The  breach  is  to 
be  repaired,  and  the  foundation  of  many  generations  to  be 
raised  up. 

Hallowed  by  the  Creator's  rest  and  blessing,  the  Sabbath 
was  kept  by  Adam  in  his  innocence  in  holy  Eden  ;  by  Adam, 
fallen  yet  repentant,  when  he  was  driven  from  his  happy 
estate.  It  was  kept  by  all  the  patriarchs,  from  Abel  to 
righteous  Noah,  to  Abraham,  to  Jacob.  When  the  chosen 
people  were  in  bondage  in  Egypt,  many,  in  the  midst  of 
prevailing  idolatry,  lost  their  knowledge  of  God's  law;  but 
when  the  Lord  delivered  Israel,  he  proclaimed  his  law  in 
awful  grandeur  to  the  assembled  multitude,  that  they  might 
know  his  will,  and  fear  and  obey  him  forever. 

From  that  day  to  the  present,  the  knowledge  of  God's  law 
has  been  preserved  in  the  earth,  and  the  Sabbath  of  the 
fourth  commandment  has  been  kept.  Though  the  "man  of 
sin  "  succeeded  in  trampling  under  foot  God's  holy  day,  yet 
even  in  the  period  of  his  supremacy  there  were,  hidden  in 
secret  places,  faithful  souls  who  paid  it  honor.  Since  the 
Reformation,  there  have  been  some  in  every  generation  to 
maintain  its  observance.  Though  often  in  the  midst  of  re- 
proach and  persecution,  a  constant  testimony  has  been  borne 
to  the  perpetuity  of  the  law  of  God,  and  the  sacred  obliga- 
tion of  the  creation  Sabbath. 

These  truths,  as  presented  in  Revelation  14,  in  connection 
with  the  "  everlasting  gospel,"  will  distinguish  the  church 
of  Christ  at  the  time  of  his  appearing.  For  as  the  result  of 
the  threefold  message  it  is  announced,  "  Here  are  they  that 
keep  the  commandments  of  God,  and  the  faith  of  Jesus." 
And  this  message  is  the  last  to  be  given  before  the  coming 

Usa.  58:12,  13. 


•ir>4  THE  GUI: A  r  ro\"r/fo  iv-v/.s'  j'. 


of  the  Lord.  Immediately  following  its  proclamation,  the 
8011  of  man  is  seen  by  the  prophet,  coming  in  glory  to  reap 
the  harvest  of  the  earth. 

Those  who  received  the  light  concerning  the  sanctuary 
and  the  immutability  of  the  law  of  God,  were  filled  with  joy 
and  wonder,  as  they  saw  the  beauty  and  harmony  of  the 
system  of  truth  that  opened  to  their  understanding.  They 
desired  that  the  light  which  appeared  to  them  so  precious 
might  be  imparted  to  all  Christians;  and  they  could  not  but 
believe  that  it  would  be  joyfully  accepted.  But  truths  that 
would  place  them  at  variance  with  the  world  were  not  wel- 
come to  many  who  claimed  to  be  followers  of  Christ.  Obe- 
dience to  the  fourth  commandment  required  a  sacrifice  from 
which  the  majority  drew  back. 

As  the  claims  of  the  Sabbath  were  presented,  many  rea- 
soned from  the  worldling's  standpoint.  Said  they:  "We 
have  always  kept  Sunday,  our  fathers  kept  it,  and  many 
good  and  pious  men  have  died  happy  while  keeping  it. 
If  they  were  right,  so  are  we.  The  keeping  of  this  new 
Sabbath  w^ould  throw  us  out  of  harmony  with  the  world, 
and  we  would  have  no  influence  over  them.  What  can  a 
little  company  keeping  the  seventh  day  hope  to  accomplish 
against  all  the  world  wrho  are  keeping  Sunday?''  It  was  by 
similar  arguments  that  the  Jews  endeavored  to  justify  their 
rejection  of  Christ.  Their  fathers  had  been  accepted  of  God 
in  presenting  the  sacrificial  offerings,  and  why  could  not  the 
children  find  salvation  in  pursuing  the  same  course?  So,  in 
the  time  of  Luther,  papists  reasoned  that  true  Christians  had 
died  in  the  Catholic  faith,  and  therefore  that  religion  was 
sufficient  for  salvation.  Such  reasoning  would  prove  an 
effectual  barrier  to  all  advancement  in  religious  faith  or 
practice. 

Many  urged  that  Sunday-keeping  had  been  an  established 
doctrine  and  a  widespread  custom  of  the  church  for  many 
centuries.  Against  this  argument  it  was  shown  that  the 
Sabbath  and  its  observance  were  more  ancient  and  wide- 


A    WOHK.   OF  REFORM.  455 


spread,  even  as  old  as  the  world  itself,  and  bearing  the  sanc- 
tion both  of  angels  and  of  God.  When  the  foundations  of 
the  earth  were  laid,  when  the  morning  stars  sang  together, 
and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy,  then  was  laid  the 
foundation  of  the  Sabbath.1  Well  may  this  institution  de- 
mand our  reverence:  it  was  ordained  by  no  human  author- 
ity, and  rests  upon  no  human  traditions;  it  was  established 
by  the  Ancient  of  days,  and  commanded  by  his  eternal  word. 

As  the  attention  of  the  people  was  called  to  the  subject  of 
Sabbath  reform,  popular  ministers  perverted  the  Word  of 
God,  placing  such  interpretations  upon  its  testimony  as 
would  best  quiet  inquiring  minds.  And  those  who  did  not 
search  the  Scriptures  for  themselves  were  content  to  accept 
conclusions  that  were  in  accordance  with  their  desires.  By 
argument,  sophistry,  the  traditions  of  the  Fathers,  and  the 
authority  of  the  church,  many  endeavored  to  overthrow  the 
truth.  Its  advocates  were  driven  to  their  Bibles  to  defend 
the  validity  of  the  fourth  commandment.  Humble  men, 
armed  with  the  Word  of  truth  alone,  withstood  the  attacks 
of  men  of  learning,  who,  with  surprise  and  anger,  found  their 
eloquent  sophistry  powerless  against  the  simple,  straightfor- 
ward reasoning  of  men  who  were  versed  in  the  Scriptures 
rather  than  in  the  subtleties  of  the  schools. 

In  the  absence  of  Bible  testimony  in  their  favor,  many 
with  unwearying  persistence  urged, — forgetting .  how  the 
same  reasoning  had  been  employed  against  Christ  and  his 
apostles, — '-'Why  do  not  our  great  men  understand  this 
Sabbath  question  ?  But  few  believe  as  you  do.  It  cannot 
be  that  you  are  right,  and  that  all  the  men  of  learning  in 
the  world  are  wrong." 

To  refute  such  arguments  it  was  needful  only  to  cite  the 
teachings  of  the  Scriptures  and  the  history  of  the  Lord's 
dealings  with  his  people  in  all  ages.  God  works  through 
those  who  hear  and  obey  his  voice,  those  who  will,  if  need 
be,  speak  unpalatable  truths,  those  who  do  not  fear  to  re- 
prove popular  sins.  The  reason  why  he  does  not  oftener 

i  Job  38:  6.  7;  Gen.  2:1-3. 


456  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

choose  men  of  learning  and  high  position  to  lead  out  in 
reform  movements  is  that  they  trust  to  their  creeds,  theories, 
and  theological  systems,  and  feel  no  need  to  be  taught  of 
God.  Only  those  who  have  a  personal  connection  with  the 
Source  of  wisdom  are  able  to  understand  or  explain  the 
Scriptures.  Men  who  have  little  of  the  learning  of  the 
schools  are  sometimes  called  to  declare  the  truth,  not  because 
they  are  unlearned,  but  because  they  are  not  too  self-suffi- 
cient to  be  taught  of  God.  They  learn  in  the  school  of 
Christ,  and  their  humility  and  obedience  make  them  great. 
In-  committing  to  them  a  knowledge  of  his  truth,  God  con- 
fers upon  them  an  honor,  in  comparison  with  which  earthly 
honor  and  human  greatness  sink  into  insignificance. 

The  majority  of  Adventists  rejected  the  truths  concerning 
the  sanctuary  and  the  law  of  God,  and  many  also  renounced 
their  faith  in  the  Advent  movement,  and  adopted  unsound 
and  conflicting  views  of  the  prophecies  which  applied  to 
that  work.  Some  were.led  into  the  error  of  repeatedly  fixing 
upon  ti  definite  time  for  the  coming  of  Christ.  The  light 
which  was  now  shining  on  the  subject  of  the  sanctuary 
would  have  shown  them  that  no  prophetic  period  extends  to 
the  second  advent;  that  the  exact  time  of  this  event  is  not 
foretold.  But,  turning  from  the  light,  they  continued  to  set 
time  after  time  for  the  Lord  to  come,  and  as  often  they  were 
disappointed. 

When  the  Thessalonian  church  received  erroneous  views 
concerning  the  coming  of  Christ,  the  apostle  Paul  counseled 
them  to  carefully  test  their  hopes  and  anticipations  by  the 
Word  of  God.  He  cited  them  to  prophecies  revealing  the 
events  to  take  place  before  Christ  should  come,  and  showed 
that  they  had  no  ground  to  expect  him  in  their  day.  "  Let 
no  man  deceive  you  by  any  means," l  are  his  words  of  warn- 
ing. Should  they  indulge  expectations  that  were  not  sanc- 
tioned by  the  Scriptures,  they  would  be  led  to  a  mistaken 
course  of  action ;  disappointment  would  expose  them  to  the 
derision  of  unbelievers,  and  they  would  be  in  danger  of 

12  These.  2:3. 


A   WORK  OF  REFORM.  457 


yielding  to  discouragement,  and  would  be  tempted  to  doubt 
the  truths  essential  for  their  salvation.  The  apostle's  ad- 
monition tc  the  Thessalonians  contains  an  important  lesson 
for  those  who  live  in  the  last  days.  Many  Adventists  have 
felt  that  unless  they  could  fix  their  faith  upon  a  definite 
time  for  the  Lord's  coming,  they  could  not  be  zealous  and 
diligent  in  the  work  of  preparation.  But  as  their  hopes  arc 
again  and  again  excited,  only  to  be  destroyed,  their  faith 
receives  such  a  shock  that  it  becomes  well-nigh  impossible 
for  them  to  be  impressed  by  the  great  truths  of  prophecy. 
The  preaching  of  a  definite  time  for  the  Judgment,  in  the 
giving  of  the  first  message,  was  ordered  of  God.  The  com- 
putation of  the  prophetic  periods  on  which  that  message 
was  based,  placing  the  close  of  the  2300  days  in  the  autumn 
of  1844,  stands  without  impeachment.  The  repeated  efforts 
to  find  new  dates  for  the  beginning  and  close  of  the  pro- 
phetic periods,  and  the  unsound  reasoning  necessary  to 
sustain  these  positions,  not  only  lead  minds  away  from  the 
present  truth,  but  throw  contempt  upon  all  efforts  to  explain 
the  prophecies.  The  more  frequently  a  definite  time  is  set 
for  the  second  advent,  and  the  more  widely  it  is  taught,  the 
better  it  suits  the  purposes  of  Satan.  After  the  time  has 
passed,  he  excites  ridicule  and  contempt  of  its  advocates, 
and  thus  casts  reproach  upon  the  great  Advent  movement 
of  1843  and  1844.  Those  who  persist  in  this  error  will  at 
last  fix  upon  a  date  too  far  in  the  future  for  the  coming  of 
Christ.  Thus  they  will  be  led  to  rest  in  a  false  security,  and 
many  will  not  be  undeceived  until  it  is  too  late. 

The  history  of  ancient  Israel  is  a  striking  illustration  of 
the  past  experience  of  the  Adventist  body.  God  led  his 
people  in  the  Advent  movement,  even  as  he  led  the  children 
of  Israel  from  Egypt.  In  the  great  disappointment  their 
faith  was  tested  as  was  that  of  the  Hebrews  at  the  Red  Sea. 
Had  they  still  trusted  to  the  guiding  hand  that  had  been 
with  them  in  their  past  experience,  they  would  have  seen 
of  the  salvation  of  God.  If.  all  who  had  .labored  unitedly 


458  TTTE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


in  the  work  in  1844  had  received  the  third  angel's  message, 
and  proclaimed  it  in  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  Lord 
would  have  wrought  mightily  with  their  efforts.  A  flood 
of  light  would  have  been  shed  upon  the  world.  Years  ago 
the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  would  have  been  warned,  the 
closing  work  completed,  and  Christ  would  have  come  for 
the  redemption  of  his  people. 

It  was  not  the  will  of  God  that  Israel  should  wander  forty 
years  in  the.  wilderness ;  he  desired  to  lead  them  directly  to 
the  land  of  Canaan,  and  establish  them  there,  a  holy,  happy 
people.  But  "  they  could  not  enter  in  because  of  unbelief." l 
Because  of  their  backsliding  and  apostasy,  they  perished  in 
the  desert,  and  others  were  raised  up  to  enter  the  promised 
land.  In  like  manner,  it  was  not  the  will  of  God  that  the 
coming  of  Christ  should  be  so  long  delayed,  and  his  people 
should  remain  so  many  years  in  this  world  of  sin  and  sorrow. 
But  unbelief  separated  them  from  God.  As  they  refused  to 
do  the  work  which  he  had  appointed  them,  others  were 
raised  up  to  proclaim  the  message.  In  mercy  to  the  world, 
Jesus  delays  his  coming,  that  sinners  may  have  an  oppor- 
tunity to  hear  the  warning,  and  find  in  him  a  shelter  before 
the  wrath  of  God  shall  be  poured  out. 

Now,  as  in  former  ages,  the  presentation  of  a  truth  that 
reproves  the  sins  and  errors  of  the  times,  will  excite  oppo- 
sition. "  Every  one  that  doeth  evil  hateth  the  light,  neither 
cometh  to  the  light>  lest  his  deeds  should  be  reproved."2 
As  men  see  that  they  cannot  maintain  their  position  by  the 
Scriptures,  many  determine  to  maintain  it  at  all  ha/ards, 
and  with  a  malicious  spirit  they  assail  the  character  and 
motives  of  those  who  stand  in  defense  of  unpopular  truth. 
It  is  the  same  policy  which  has  been  pursued  in  all  ages. 
Elijah  was  declared  to  be  a  troubler  of  Israel,  Jeremiah  a 
traitor,  Paul  a  polluter  of  the  temple.  From  that  day  to 
this,  those  who  would  be  loyal  to  truth  have  been  denounced 
as  seditious,  heretical,  or  schismatic.  Multitudes  who  are 

JHeb.  3:19.  2  John  3:  20. 


A    WORK  OF  REFORM.  459 

too  unbelieving  to  accept  the  sure  word  of  prophecy,  will 
receive  with  unquestioning  credulity  an  accusation  against 
those  who  dare  to  reprove  fashionable  sins.  This  spirit  will 
increase  more  and  more.  And  the  Bible  plainly  teaches 
that  a  time  is  approaching  when  the  laws  of  the  State  shall 
so  conflict  with  the  law  of  God  that  whoever  would  obey  all 
the  divine  precepts  must  brave  reproach  and  punishment 
as  an  evil-doer. 

And  in  view  of  this,  what  is  the  duty  of  the  messenger  of 
truth?  Shall  he  conclude  that  the  truth  ought  not  to  be 
presented,  since  often  its  only  effect  is  to  arouse  men  to  evade 
or  resist  its  claims?  No;  he  has  no  more  reason  for  with- 
holding the  testimony  of  God's  Word,  because  it  excites  oppo- 
sition, than  had  earlier  reformers.  The  confession  of  faith 
made  by  saints  and  martyrs  was  recorded  for  the  benefit  of 
succeeding  generations.  Those  living  examples  of  holiness 
and  steadfast  integrity  have  come  down  to  inspire  courage 
in  those  who  are  now  called  to  stand  as  witnesses  for  God. 
They  received  grace  and  truth,  not  for  themselves  alone,  but 
that,  through  them,  the  knowledge  of  God  might  enlighten 
the  earth.  Has  God  given  light  to  his  servants  in  this  gen- 
eration ?  Then  they  should  let  it  shine  forth  to  the  world. 

Anciently  the  Lord  declared  to  one  who  spoke  in  his 
name,  "  The  house  of  Israel  will  not  hearken  unto  thee ;  for 
they  will  not  hearken  unto  me."  Nevertheless  he  said, 
"  Thou  shalt  speak  my  words  unto  them,  whether  they  will 
hear,  or  whether  they  will  forbear." l  To  the  servant  of  God 
at  this  time  is  the  command  addressed,  "Lift  up  thy  voice 
like  a  trumpet,  and  show  my  people  their  transgression,  and 
the  house  of  Jacob  their  sins." 

So  far  as  his  opportunities  extend,  every  one  who  has  re- 
ceived the  light  of  truth  is  under  the  same  solemn  and  fearful 
responsibility  as  was  the  prophet  of  Israel,  to  whom  the 
word  of  the  Lord  came,  saying:  "Son  of  man,  I  have  set 
thee  a  watchman  unto  the  house  of  Israel ;  therefore  thou 

Eze.  3:7;  2:7. 


460  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


shalt  hear  the  word  at  my  mouth,  and  warn  them  from  me. 
When  I  say  unto  the  wicked,  O  wicked  man,  thou  shalt 
surely  die;  if  thou  dost  not  speak  to  warn  the  wicked  from 
liis  way,  that  wicked  man  shall  die  in  his  iniquity;  hut  his 
l>l<>od  will  I  require  at  thine  hand.  Nevertheless,  if  thou 
warn  the  wicked  of  his  way  to  turn  from  it;  if  he  do  not 
turn  from  his  way,  he  shall  die  in  his  iniquity;  but  thou 
hast  delivered  thy  soul." 1 

The  great  obstacle  both  to  the  acceptance  and  to  the  pro- 
mulgation of  truth,  is  the  fact  that  it  involves  inconvenience 
and  reproach.  This  is  the  only  argument  against  the  truth 
which  its  advocates  have  never  been  able  to  refute.  But 
this  does  not  deter  the  true  followers  of  Christ.  These  do 
not  wait  for  truth  to  become  popular.  Being  convinced  of 
their  duty,  they  deliberately  accept  the  cross,  with  the 
apostle  Paul  counting  that  "our  light  affliction,  which  is 
but  for  a  moment,  worketh  for  us  a  far  more  exceeding  and 
eternal  weight  of  glory ; " 2  with  one  of  old,  "  esteeming  the 
reproach  of  Christ  greater  riches  than  the  treasures  in 
Egypt."3 

Whatever  may  be  their  profession,  it  is  only  those  who 
are  world-servers  at  heart  that  act  from  policy  rather  than 
principle  in  religious  things.  We  should  choose  the  right 
because  it  is  right,  and  leave  consequences  with  God.  To 
men  of  principle,  faith,  and  daring,  the  world  is  indebted 
for  its  great  reforms.  By  such  men  the  work  of  reform  for 
this  time  must  be  carried  forward. 

Thus  saith  the  Lord:  "Hearken  unto  me,  ye  that  know 
righteousness,  the  people  in  whose  heart  is  my  law;  fear  ye 
not  the  reproach  of  men,  neither  be  ye  afraid  of  their  re- 
vilings.  For  the  moth  shall  eat  them  up  like  a  garment, 
and  the  worm  shall  eat  them  like  wool ;  but  my  righteous- 
ness shall  be  forever,  and  my  salvation  from  generation  to 
generation."  * 

lEze.33:7-9.      22Cor.4:17.      3Heb.  11  :26.      Msa.  51  : 7,  8. 


CHAPTER    XXVII 


MODERN  REVIVALS. 

WHEREVER  the  Word  of  God  has  been  faithfully  preached, 
results  have  followed  that  attested  its  divine  origin.  The 
Spirit  of  God  accompanied  the  message  of  his  servants,  and 
the  word  was  with  power.  Sinners  felt  their  consciences 
quickened.  The  "  light  which  lighteth  every  man  that  com- 
et h  into  the  world,"  illumined  the  secret  chambers  of  their 
souls,  and  the  hidden  things  of  darkness  were  made  mani- 
fest. Deep  conviction  took  hold  upon  their  minds  and  hearts. 
They  were  convinced  of  sin,  and  of  righteousness,  and  of 
judgment  to  come.  They  had  a  sense  of  the  righteousness 
of  Jehovah,  and  felt  the  terror  of  appearing,  in  their  guilt 
and  uiicleanness,  before  the  Searcher  of  hearts.  In  anguish 
they  cried  out,  "  Who  shall  deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this 
death?"  As  the  cross  of  Calvary,  with  its  infinite  sacrifice 
for  the  sins  of  men,  was  revealed,  they  saw  that  nothing  but 
the  merits  of  Christ  could  suffice  to  atone  for  their  trans- 
gressions; this  alone  could  reconcile  man  to  God.  With 
faith  and  humility  they  accepted  the  Lamb  of  God,  that 
taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  -Through  the  blood  of 
Jesus  they  had  "  remission  of  sins  that  are  past." 

These  souls  brought  forth  fruit  meet  for  repentance.  They 
believed  and  were  baptized,  and  rose  to  walk  in  newness  of 
life, — new  creatures  in  Christ  Jesus.  Not  to  fashion  them- 
selves according  to  the  former  lusts,  but  by  the  faith  of  the 
Son  of  God  to  follow  in  hk  steps,  to  reflect  his  character,  and 
to  purify  themselves  even  as  he  is  pure.  The  things  they 
once  hated,  they  now  loved;  and  the  things  they  once  loved, 
they  hated.  The  proud  and  self-assertive  became  meek  and 

(461) 


402  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

lowly  of  heart.  The  vain  and  supercilious  became  serious 
and  unobtrusive.  The  profane  became  reverent,  the  drunken 
sober,  and  the  profligate  pure.  The  vain  fashions  of  the 
world  were  laid  aside.  Christians  sought  not  the  "  outward 
adorning  of  plaiting  the  hair,  and  of  wearing  of  gold,  or  of 
putting  on  of  apparel;  but  the  hidden  man  of  the  heart,  in 
that  which  is  not  corruptible,  even  the  ornament  of  a  meek 
and  quiet  spirit,  which  is  in  the  sight  of  God  of- great 
price."1 

Revivals  brought  deep  heart-searching  and  humility. 
They  were  characterized  by  solemn,  earnest  appeals  to  the  sin- 
ner, by  yearning  compassion  for  the  purchase  of  the  blood  of 
Christ.  Men  and  women  prayed  and  wrestled  with  God  for 
the  salvation  of  souls.  The  fruits  of  such  revivals  were 
seen  in  souls  who  shrank  not  at  self-denial  and  sacrifice,  but 
rejoiced  that  they  were  counted  worthy  to  suffer  reproach 
and  trial  for  the  sake  of  Christ.  Men  beheld  a  transformation 
in  the  lives  of  those  who  had  professed  the  name  of  Jesus. 
The  community  Avas  benefited  by  their  influence.  They 
gathered  with  Christ,  and  sowed  to  the  Spirit,  to  reap  life 
everlasting. 

It  could  be  said  of  them:  "Ye  sorrowed  to  repentance." 
"  For  godly  sorrow  worketh  repentance  to  salvation  not  to  be 
repented  of;  but  the  sorrow  of  the  world  worketh  death. 
For  behold  this  self-same  thing,  that  ye  sorrowed  after  a  godly 
sort,  what  carefulness  it  wrought  in  you,  yea,  what  clearing 
of  yourselves,  yea,  what  indignation,  yea,  what  fear,  yea, 
what  vehement  desire,  yea,  what  zeal,  yea,  what  revenge! 
In  all  things  ye  have  approved  yourselves  to  be  clear  in  this 
matter." a 

This  is  the  result  of  the  work  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  There 
is  no  evidence  of  genuine  repentance  unless  it  works  reforma- 
tion. If  he  restore  the  pledge,  give  again  that  he  had  robbed, 
confess  his  sins,  and  love  ( lod  and  his  fellow-men,  the  sinner 
may  be  sure  that  he  has  found  peace  with  God.  Such  were 

l\  Tot.  3:  3, 4.  "iH'or.  7  :9-ll. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  463 


the  effects  that  in  former  years  followed  seasons  of  religious 
awakening.  Judged  by  their  fruits,  they  were  known  to  be 
blessed  of  God  in  the  salvation  of  men  and  the  uplifting  of 
humanity. 

But  many  of  the  revivals  of  modern  times  have  presented 
a  marked  contrast  to  those  manifestations  of  divine  grace 
which  in  earlier  days  followed  the  labors  of  God's  servants. 
It  is  true  that  a  widespread  interest  is  kindled,  many  profess 
conversion,  and  there  are  large  accessions  to  the  churches; 
nevertheless  the  results  are  not  such  as  to  warrant  the 
belief  that  there  has  been  a  corresponding  increase  of  real 
spiritual  life.  The  light  which  flames  up  for  a  time  soon 
dies  out,  leaving  the  darkness  more  dense  than  before. 

Popular  revivals  are  too  often  carried  by  appeals  to  the 
imagination,  by  exciting  the  emotions,  by  gratifying  the  love 
for  what  is  new  and  startling.  Converts  thus  gained  have 
little  desire  to  listen  to  Bible  truth,  little  interest  in  the  testi- 
mony of  prophets  and  apostles.  Unless  a  religious  service 
has  something  of  a  sensational  character,  it  has  no  attractions 
for  them.  A  message  which  appeals  to  unimpassioned  rea- 
son, awakens  no  response.  The  plain  warnings  of  God's 
Word,  relating  directly  to  their  eternal  interests,  are  unheeded. 

With  every  truly  converted  soul  the  relation  to  God  and 
to  eternal  things  will  be  the  great  topic  of  life.  But  where, 
in  the  popular  churches  of  to-day,  is  the  spirit  of  consecra- 
tion to  God?  The  converts  do  not  renounce  their  pride,  and 
love  of  the  world.  They  are  no  more  willing  to  deny  self,  to 
take  up  the  cross,  and  follow  the  meek  and  lowly  Jesus,  than 
before  their  conversion.  Religion  has  become  the  sport  of 
infidels  and  skeptics  because  so  many  who  bear  its  numo 
are  ignorant  of  its  principles.  The  power  of  godliness  has 
well-nigh  departed  from  many  of  the  churches.  Picnics, 
church  theatricals,  church  fairs,  fine  houses,  personal  display, 
have  banished  thoughts  of  God.  Lands  and  goods  and  worldly 
occupations  engross  the  mind,  and  things  of  eternal  interest 
receive  hardly  a  passing  notice, 
34 


464  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


Notwithstanding  the  widespread  declension  of  faith  and 
piety,  there  are  true  followers  of  Christ  in  these  churches. 
Before  the  final  visitation  of  God's  judgments  upon  the 
earth,  there  will  be,  among  the  people  of  the  Lord,  such  a 
revival  of  primitive  godliness  as  has  not  been  witnessed 
since  apostolic  times.  The  Spirit  and  power  of  God  will  be 
poured  out  upon  his  children.  At  that  time  many  will 
separate  themselves  from  those  churches  in  which  the  love 
of  this  world  has  supplanted  love  for  God  and  his  Word. 
Many,  both  of  ministers  and  people,  will  gladly  accept  those 
great  truths  which  God  has  caused  to  be  proclaimed  at  this 
time,  to  prepare  a  people  for  the  Lord's  second  coming.  The 
enemy  of  souls  desires  to  hinder  this  work;  and  before  the 
time  for  such  a  movement  shall  come,  he  will  endeavor  to 
prevent  it,  by  introducing  a  counterfeit.  In  those  churches 
which  he  can  bring  under  his  deceptive  powrer,  he  will  make 
it  appear  that  God's  special  blessing  is  poured  out;  there 
will  be  manifest  what  is  thought  to  be  great  religious  in- 
terest. Multitudes  will  exult  that  God  is  working  marvel- 
ously  for  them,  when  the  work  is  that  of  another  spirit. 
Under  a  religious  guise,  Satan  will  seek  to  extend  his  in- 
fluence over  the  Christian  world. 

In  many  of  the  revivals  which  have  occurred  during  the 
last  half  century,  the  same  influences  have  been  at  work,  to 
a  greater  or  less  degree,  that  will  be  manifest  in  the  more 
extensive  movements  of  the  future.  There  is  an  emotional 
excitement,  a  mingling  of  the  true  with  the  false,  that  is 
well  adapted  to  mislead.  Yet  none  need  be  deceived.  In 
the  light  of  God's  Word  it  is  not  difficult  to  determine  the 
nature  of  these  movements.  Wherever  men  neglect  the 
testimony  of  the  Bible,  turning  away  from  those  plain,  soul- 
testing  truths  which  require  self-denial  and  renunciation  of 
the  world,  there  we  may  be  sure  that  God's  blessing  is  not 
bestowed.  And  by  the  rule  which  Christ  himself  has  given. 
"Ye  shall  know  them  by  their  fruits."1  it  is  evident  that 
these  movements  are  not  the  work  of  the  Spirit  of  God. 

1Matt.  7  .16. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  465 

In  the  truths  of  his  Word,  God  has  given  to  men  a  reve- 
lation of  himself;  and  to  all  who  accept  them  they  are  a 
shield  against  the  deceptions  of  Satan.  It  is  a  neglect  of 
these  truths  that  has  opened  the  door  to  the  evils  which  are 
now  becoming  so  widespread  in  the  religious  world.  The 
nature  and  the  importance  of  the  law  of  God  have  been,  to 
a  great  extent,  lost  sight  of.  A  wrong  conception  of  the 
character,  the  perpetuity,  and  obligation  of  the  divine  law 
has  led  to  errors  in  relation  to  conversion  and  sanctification, 
and  has  resulted  in  lowering  the  standard  of  piety  in  the 
church.  Here  is  to  be  found  the  secret  of  the  lack  of  the 
Spirit  and  power  of  God  in  the  revivals  of  our  time. 

There  are,  in  the  various  denominations,  men  eminent 
for  their  piety,  by  whom  this  fact  is  acknowledged  and  de- 
plored. Prof.  Edward  Park,  in  setting  forth  the  current 
religious  perils,  ably  says:  "One  source  of  danger  is  the 
neglect  of  the  pulpit  to  enforce  the  divine  law.  In  former 
days  the  pulpit  was  an  echo  of  the  voice  of  conscience.  .  . 
Our  most  illustrious  preachers  gave  a  wonderful  majesty  to 
their  discourses  by  following  the  example  o'f  the  Master,  and 
giving  prominence  to  the  law,  its  precepts,  and  its  threat- 
enings.  They  repeated  the  two  great  maxims,  that  the  law 
is  a  transcript  of  the  divine  perfections,  and  that  a  man  who 
does  not  love  the  law  does  not  love  the  gospel ;  for  the  law, 
as  well  as  the  gospel,  is  a  mirror  reflecting  the  true  char- 
acter of  God.  This  peril  leads  to  another,  that  of  under- 
rating the  evil  of  sin,  the  extent  of  it,  the  demerit  of  it.-  In 
proportion  to  the  rightfulness  of  the  commandment  is  the 
wrongfulness  of  disobeying  it." 

"Affiliated  to  the  dangers  already  named  is  the  danger 
of  underestimating  the  justice  of  God.  The  tendency  of 
the  modern  pulpit  is  to  strain  out  the  divine  justice  from 
the  divine  benevolence,  to  sink  benevolence  into  a  sentiment 
rather  than  exalt  it  into  a  principle.  The  new  theological 
prism  puts  asunder  what  God  has  joined  together.  Is  the 
law  a  good  or  an  evil?  It  is  a  good.  Then  justice 


466  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


is  good;  for  it  is  a  disposition  to  execute  the  law.  From  the 
habit  of  underrating  the  divine  law  and  justice,  the  extent 
and  demerit  of  human  disobedience,  men  easily  slide  into 
the  habit  of  underestimating  the  grace  which  has  provided 
an  atonement  for  sin."  Thus  the  gospel  loses  its  value  and 
importance  in  the  minds  of  men,  and  soon  they  are  ready 
to  practically  cast  aside  the  Bible  itself. 

Many  religious  teachers  assert  that  Christ  by  his  death 
abolished  the  law,  and  men  are  henceforth  free  from  its 
requirements.  There  are  some  who  represent  it  as  a  grievous 
yoke,  and  in  contrast  to  the  bondage  of  the  law,  they  present 
the  liberty  to  be  enjoyed  under  the  gospel. 

But  not  so  did  prophets  and  apostles  regard  the  holy  law 
of  God.  Said  David,  "  I  will  walk  at  liberty;  for  I  seek  thy 
precepts." '  The  apostle  James,  who  wrote  after  the  death 
of  Christ,  refers  to  the  decalogue  as  the  "  royal  law,"  and  the 
"  perfect  law  of  liberty." 2  And  the  Revelator,  half  a  century 
after  the  crucifixion,  pronounces  a  blessing  upon  them  "  that 
do  his  commandments,  that  they  may  have  right  to  the  tree 
of  life,  and  may  enter  in  through  the  gates  into  the  city."3 

The  claim  that  Christ  by  his  death  abolished  his  Father's 
law,  is  without  foundation.  Had  it  been  possible  for  the 
law  to  be  changed  or  set  aside,  then  Christ  need  not  have 
died  to  save  man  from  the  penalty  of  sin.  The  death  of 
Christ,  so  far  from  abolishing  the  law,  proves  that  it  is  im- 
mutable. The  Son  of  God  came  to  "magnify  the  law,  and 
mak-e  it  honorable."*  He  said,  "  Think  not  that  I  am  conic 
to  destroy  the  law;"  "till  heaven  and  earth  pass,  one  jot  or 
one  tittle  shall  in  nowise  pass  from  the  law."5  And  con- 
cerning himself  he  declares,  "  I  delight  to  do  thy  will,  0  my 
God;  yea,  thy  law  is  within  my  heart."6 

The  law  of  God,  from  its  very  nature,  is  unchangeable. 
It  is  a  revelation  of  the  will  and  the  character  of  its  Author. 
God  is  love,  and  his  law  is  love.  Its  two  great  principles 

1  Ps.  Ill):  4.". .  2  James  L> :  8 ;  1  :  •_'"> .  n  I .V v.  22 :  1 4. 

<Isa.  42:21.  5  Matt.  5  :  17,  18.  «Ps.40:8. 


46? 


are  love  to  God  and  man.  "Love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the 
law."1  The  character  of  God  is  righteousness  and  truth; 
such  is  the  nature  of  his  law.  Says  the  psalmist,  "  Thy  law 
is  the  truth  ;  "  "  all  thy  commandments  are  righteousness."  2 
And  the  apostle  Paul  declares,  "The  law  is  holy,  and  the 
commandment  holy,  and  just,  and  good."4  Such  a  law, 
being  an  expression  of  the  mind  and  will  of  God,  must  be 
as  enduring  as  its  Author. 

It  is  the  work  of  conversion  and  sanctification  to  reconcile 
men  to  God,  by  bringing  them  into  accord  with  the  princi- 
ples of  his  law.  In  the  beginning,  man  was  created  in  the 
image  of  God.  He  was  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  nature 
and  the  law  of  God;  the  principles  of  righteousness  were 
written  upon  his  heart.  But  sin  alienated  him  from  his 
Maker.  He  no  longer  reflected  the  divine  image.  His  heart 
was  at  war  with  the  principles  of  God's  law.  "  The  carnal 
mind  is  enmity  against  God;  for  it  is  not  subject  to  the  law 
of  God,  neither  indeed  can  be."4  But  "God  so  loved  the 
world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten  Son,"  that  man  might 
be  reconciled  to  God.  Through  the  merits  of  Christ  he  can 
be  restored  to  harmony  with  his  Maker.  His  heart  must 
be  renewed  by  divine  grace,  he  must  have  a  new  life  from 
above.  This  change  is  the  new  birth,  'without  which,  says 
Jesus,  "  he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God." 

The  first  step  in  reconcilation  to  God,  is  the  conviction  of 
sin.  "  Sin  is  the  transgression  of  the  law."  "  By  the  law  is 
the  knowledge  of  sin."  s  In  order  to  see  his  guilt,  the  sinner 
must  test  his  character  by  God's  great  standard  of  righteous- 
ness. It  is  a  mirror  which  shows  the  perfection  of  a  righteous 
character,  and  enables  him  to  discern  the  defects  in  his  own. 

The  law  reveals  to  man  his  sins,  but  it  provides  no  remedy. 
While  it  promises  life  to  the  obedient,  it  declares  that 
death  is  the  portion  of  the  transgressor.  The  gospel  of 
Christ  alone  can  free  him  from  the  condemnation  or  the  defile- 

i  Rom.  13:10.  2  Ps.  1  19  :  142,  172.  3  Rom.  7  i  12. 

*Rom.  8:7.  5  1  John  3:4;  Rom.  3  :  20. 


468  TUB  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

nil-lit  of  sin.  He  must  exercise  repentance  toward  God, 
whose  law  has  been  transgressed,  and  faith  in  Christ,  his 
atoning  sacrifice.  Thus  he  obtains  "  remission  of  sins  that 
are  past,"  and  becomes  a  partaker  of  the  divine  nature.  He 
is  a  child  of  God,  having  received  the  spirit  of  adoption, 
whereby  he  cries,  "  Abba,  Father! " 

Is  he  now  free  to  transgress  God's  law?  Says  Paul:  "  Do 
we  then  make  void  the  law  through  faith?  God  forbid; 
yea,  we  establish  the  law."  "  How  shall  we,  that  are  dead  to 
sin,  live  any  longer  therein  ?  "  And  John  declares,  "  This  is 
the  love  of  God,  that  we  keep  his  commandments;  and  his 
commandments  are  not  grievous/' 1  In  the  new  birth  the 
heart  is  brought  into  harmony  with  God,  as  it  is  brought 
into  accord  with  his  law.  When  this  mighty  change  has 
taken  place  in  the  sinner,  he  has  passed  from  death  unto 
life,  from  sin  unto  holiness,  from  transgression  and  rebellion 
to  obedience  and  loyalty.  The  old  life  of  alienation  from 
God  has  ended ;  the  new  life  of  reconciliation,  of  faith  and 
love,  has  begun.  Then  "the  righteousness  of  the  law"  will 
"  be  fulfilled  in  us,  who  walk  not  after  the  flesh,  but  after 
the  Spirit."'  And  the  language  of  the  soul  will  be,  "0 
how  love  I  thy  law!  it  is  my  meditation  all  the  day."8 

"  The  law  of  the'  Lord  is  perfect,  converting  the  soul."  * 
Without  the  law,  men  have  no  just  conception  of  the  purity 
;i nd  holiness  of  God,  or  of  their  own  guilt  and  uncleanness. 
They  have  no  true  conviction  of  sin,  and  feel  no  need  of 
repentance.  Not  seeing  their  lost  condition  as  violators  of 
God's  law,  they  do  not  realize  their  need  of  the  atoning 
blood  of  Christ.  The  hope  of  salvation  is  accepted  without 
a  radical  change  of  heart  or  reformation  of  life.  Thus  super- 
ficial conversions  abound,  and  multitudes  are  joined  to  the 
church  who  have  never  been  united  to  Christ. 

Erroneous  theories  of  sanctification,  also,  springing  from 
neglect  or  rejection  of  the  divine  law,  have  a  prominent 

.  3:  31;  6:  2;  1  John  5:3.  2Rom.  8:4. 

119:97.  4Ps.  19:7. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  469 


place  in  the  religious  movements  of  the  day.  These  theories 
are  both  false  in  doctrine,  and  dangerous  in  practical  results  ; 
and  the  fact  that  they  are  so  generally  finding  favor  renders 
it  doubly  essential  that  all  have  a  clear  understanding  of 
what  the  Scriptures  teach  upon  this  point. 

True  sanctification  is  a  Bible  doctrine.  The  apostle  Paul, 
in  his  letter  to  the  Thessalonian  church,  declares,  "  This  is 
the  will  of  God,  even  your  sanctification."  And  he  prays, 
"  The  very  God  of  peace  sanctify  you  wholly." l  The  Bible 
clearly  teaches  what  sanctification  is,  and  how  it  is  to  be 
attained.  The  Saviour  prayed  for  his  disciples,  "  Sanctify 
them  through  thy  truth;  thy  Word  is  truth."2  And  Paul 
teaches  that  believers  are  to  be  "sanctified  by  the  Holy 
Ghost." 3  What  is  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit?  Jesus  told 
his  disciples,  "  When  he,  the  Spirit  of  truth,  is  come,  he  will 
guide  you  into  all  truth."  *  And  the  psalmist  says,  "  Thy 
law  is  the  truth."  By  the  Word  and  the  Spirit  of  God  are 
opened  to  men  the  great  principles  of  righteousness  embodied 
in  his  law.  And  since  the  law  of  God  is  "  holy,  and  just, 
and  good,"  a  transcript  of  the  divine  perfection,  it  follows 
that  a  character  formed  by  obedience  to  that  law  will  be 
holy.  Christ  is  a  perfect  example  of  such  a  character.  He 
says,  "  I  have  kept  my  Father's  commandments."  "  I  do 
always  those  things  that  please  him." £  The  followers  of 
Christ  are  to  become  like  him, — by  the  grace  of  God,  to 
form  characters  in  harmony  with  the  principles  of  his  holy 
law.  This  is  Bible  sanctification. 

This  work  can  be  accomplished  only  through  faith  in 
Christ,  by  the  power  of  the  indwelling  Spirit  of  God.  Paul 
admonishes  believers,  "  Work  out  your  own  salvation  with 
fear  and  trembling.  For  it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you 
both  to  will  and  to  do  of  his  good  pleasure." 6  The  Christian 
will  feel  the  promptings  of  sin,  but  he  will  maintain  a  con- 
stant warfare  against  it.  Here  is  where  Christ's  help  is 

1  1  Thess.  4  :  3;  5  :  23.          2  John  17  : 17,  19.  3Rom.l5:16. 

4  John  16  : 13.  6  John  15  :  10;  8  :  29.        6  Phil.  2  :  12,  13, 


470  TtJE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


needed.  Human  weakness  becomes  united  to  divine 
strength,  and  faith  exclaims,  "Thanks  be  to  God,  which 
giveth  us  the  victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." l 

The  Scriptures  plainly  show  that  the  work  of  sanctifi- 
cation  is  progressive.  When  in  conversion  the  sinner  finds 
peace  with  God  through  the  blood  of  the  atonement,  the 
Christian  life  has  but  just  begun.  Now  he  is  to  "  go  on  unto 
perfection;"  to  grow  up  "unto  the  measure  of  the  stature 
of  the  fullness  of  Christ."  Says  the  apostle  Paul :  "  This  one 
thing  I  do,  forgetting  those  things  which  are  behind,  and 
reaching  forth  unto  those  things  which  are  before,  I  press 
toward  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of  God  in 
Christ  Jesus."2  And  Peter  sets  before  us  the  steps  by  which 
Bible  sanctification  is  to  be  attained :  "  Giving  all  diligence, 
add  to  your  faith  virtue;  and  to  virtue  knowledge;  and  to 
knowledge  temperance ;  and  to  temperance  patience ;  and  to 
patience  godliness;  and  to  godliness  brotherly  kindness; 
and  to  brotherly  kindness  charity.  ...  If  ye  do  these 
things,  ye  shall  never  fall."3 

Those  who  experience  the  sanctification  of  the  Bible  will 
manifest  a  spirit  of  humility.  Like  Moses,  they  have  had 
a  view  of  the  awful  majesty  of  holiness,  and  they  see  their 
own  un worthiness,  in  contrast  with  the  purity  and  exalted 
perfection  of  the  Infinite  One. 

The  prophet  Daniel  was  an  example  of  true  sanctification. 
His  long  life  was  filled  up  with  noble  service  for  his  Master. 
He  was  a  man  "greatly  beloved  "4  of  Heaven.  Yet  instead 
of  claiming  to  be  pure  and  holy,  this  honored  prophet  iden- 
tified himself  with  the  really  sinful  of  Israel,  as  he  pleaded 
before  God  in  behalf  of  his  people:  "  We  do  not  present  our 
supplications  before  thee  for  our  righteousnesses,  but  for  thy 
great  mercies."  "  \Ve  have  sinned,  we  have  done  wickedly/' 
He  declares,  "I  was  speaking,  and  praying,  and  confessing 
my  sin  and  the  sin  of  my  people."  And  when  at  a  later 
time  the  Son  of  God  appeared,  to  give  him  instruction,  he 

M  Cor.  15:57.     2  Phil.  3  : 13,  14.     32  Pet.  1  :5-10.     *  Dan.  10:11. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  471 


declares,  "My  comeliness  was  turned  in  me  into  corruption, 
and  I  retained  no  strength.'' l 

When  Job  heard  the  voice  of  the  Lord  out  of  the  whirl- 
wind, lie  exclaimed,  "I  abhor  myself,  and  repent  in  dust 
and  ashes."2  It  was  when  Isaiah  saw  the  glory  of  the  Lord, 
and  heard  the  cherubim  crying,  "  Holy,  holy,  holy,  is  the 
Lord  of  hosts,"  that  he  cried  out,  "Woe  is  me!  for  I  am 
undone."3  Paul,  after  he  was  caught  up  into  the  third 
heaven,  and  heard  things  which  it  was  not  possible  for  a 
man  to  utter,  speaks  of  himself  as  "  less  than  the  least  of 
all  saints."  *  It  was  the  beloved  John,  that  leaned  on  Jesus' 
breast,  and  beheld  his  glory,  who  fell  as  one  dead  before  the 
feet  of  the  angel/ 

There  can  be  no  self-exaltation,  no  boastful  claim  to 
freedom  from  sin,  on  the  part  of  those  who  walk  in  the 
shadow  of  Calvary's  cross.  They  feel  that  it  was  their  sin 
which  caused  the  agony  tliat  broke  the  heart  of  the  Son  of 
God,  and  this  thought  will  lead  them  to  self-abasement. 
Those  who  live  nearest  to  Jesus  discern  most  clearly  the 
frailty  and  sinfulnes  ^  iiumanity,  and  their  only  hope  is 
in  the  merit  of  a  crucified  and  risen  Saviour. 

The  sanctification  now  gaining  prominence  in  the  religious 
world,  carries  with  it  a  spirit  of  self-exaltation,  and  a  dis- 
regard for  the  law  of  God,  that  mark  it  as  foreign  to  the 
religion  of  the  Bible.  Its  advocates  teach  that  sanctification 
is  an  instantaneous  work,  by  which,  through  faith  alone, 
they  attain  to  perfect  holiness.  "Only  believe,"  say  they, 
"and  the  blessing  is  yours."  No  further  effort  on  the  part 
of  the  receiver  is  supposed  to  be  required.  At  the  same  time 
they  deny  the  authority  of  the  law  of  God,  urging  that  tlicy 
are  released  from  obligation  to  keep  the  commandments. 
But  is  it  possible  for  men  to  be  holy,  in  accord  with  the  will 
and  character  of  God,  without  coming  into  harmony  with 
the  principles  which  are  an  expression  of  his  nature  and 
will,  and  which  show  what  is  well-pleasing  to  him  ? 

1  Dan.  9: 18,  15,  20;  10:8.  2job42:6.  3Isa.  6:3,  5. 

*  2  Cor.  12  : 2-4  (margin) ;  Eph.  3:8.  *  Rev.  22 : 8. 


472  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

The  desire  for  an  easy  religion,  that  requires  no  striving, 
no  self-denial,  110  divorce  from  the  follies  of  the  world,  lias 
made  the  doctrine  of  faith,  and  faith  only,  a  popular  doc- 
trine; but  what  saith  the  Word  of  God?  Says  the  apostle 
James:  "What  doth  it  profit,  my  brethren,  though  a  man 
say  he  hath  faith,  and  have  not  works?  can  faith  save 
him?  .  .  .  Wilt  thou  know,  O  vain  man,  that  faith 
without  works  is  dead?  Was  not  Abraham  our  father 
justified  by  works,  when  he  had  offered  Isaac  his  son  upon 
the  altar?  Seest  thou  how  faith  wrought  with  his  works, 
and  by  works  was  faith  made  perfect?  .  .  .  Ye  see  then 
how  that  by  works  a  man  is  justified,  and  not  by  faith  only." 1 

The  testimony  of  the  Word  of  God  is  against  this  ensnar- 
ing doctrine  of  faith  without  works.  It  is  not  faith  that 
claims  the  favor  of  Heaven  without  complying  with  the 
conditions  upon  which  mercy  is  to  be  granted.  It  is  pre- 
sumption; for  genuine  faith  has  its  foundation  in  the  prom- 
ises and  provisions  of  the  Scriptures. 

Let  none  deceive  themselves  with  the  belief  that  they  can 
become  holy  while  willfully  violating  one  of  God's  require- 
ments. The  commission  of  a  known  sin  silences  the  wit- 
nessing voice  of  the  Spirit,  and  separates  the  soul  from 
God.  "  Sin  is  the  transgression  of  the  law."  And  "  whoso- 
ever sinneth  [transgresseth  the  law]  hath  not  seen  him, 
neither  known  him." 2  Though  John  in  his  epistles  dwells 
so  fully  upon  love,  yet  he -does  not  hesitate  to  reveal  the  true 
character  of  that  class  who  claim  to  be  sanctified  while 
living  in  transgression  of  the  law  of  God.  "  He  that  saith, 
I  know  Him,  and  keepeth  not  his  commandments,  is  a  liar, 
and  the  truth  is  not  in  him.  But  whoso  keepeth  his  word, 
in  him  verily  is  the  love  of  God  perfected/'3  Here  is  the. 
test  of  every  man's  profession.  .We  cannot  accord  holiness 
to  any  man  without  bringing  him  to  the  measurement  of 
God's  only  standard  of  holiness  in  Heaven  and  in  earth. 
If  men  feel  no  weight  of  the  moral  law,  if  they  belittle  and 

1  James  2  : 14-24.  a  1  John  3  :  6.  sl  John  2: 4,  6. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  473 


make  light  of  God's  precepts,  if  they  break  one  of  the  least 
of  these  commandments,  and  teach  men  so,  they  shall  be  of 
no  esteem  in  the  sight  of  Heaven,  and  we  may  know  that 
their  claims  are  without  foundation. 

And  the  claim  to  be  without  sin  is,  in  itself,  evidence  that 
he  who  makes  this  claim  is  far  from  holy.  It  is  because  he 
has  no  true  conception  of  the  infinite  purity  and  holiness  of 
God,  or  of  what  they  must  become  who  shall  be  in  harmony 
with  his  character;  because  he  has  no  true  conception  of  the 
purity  and  exalted  loveliness  of  Jesus,  and  the  malignity 
and  evil  of  sin,  that  man  can  regard  himself  as  holy.  The 
greater  the  distance  between  himself  and  Christ,  and  the 
more  inadequate  his  conceptions  of  the  divine  character  and 
requirements,  the  more  righteous  he  appears  in  his  own  eyes. 

The  sanctification  set  forth  in  the  Scriptures  embraces  the 
entire  being, — spirit,  soul,  and  body.  Paul  prayed  for  the 
Thessalonians,  that  their  "whole  spirit  and  soul  and  body 
be  preserved  blameless  unto  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."  *  Again  he  writes  to  believers,  "  I  beseech  you 
therefore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God,  that  ye  present 
your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable  unto  God."2 
In  the  time  of  ancient  Israel,  every  offering  brought  as  a 
sacrifice  to  God  was  carefully  examined.  If  any  defect  was 
discovered  in  the  animal  presented,  it  was  refused;  for  God 
had  commanded  that  the  offering  be  "  without  blemish." 
So  Christians  are  bidden  to  present  their  bodies,  "  a  living 
sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable  unto  God."  In  order  to  do  this, 
all  their  powers  must  be  preserved  in  the  best  possible  con- 
dition. Every  practice  that  weakens  physical  or  mental 
strength  unfits  man  for  the  service  of  his  Creator.  And 
will  God  be  pleased  with  anything  less  than  the  best  we  can 
offer?  Said  Christ,  "Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God 
with  all  thy  heart."  Those  who  do  love  God  with  all  the 
heart,  will  desire  to  give  him  the  best  service  of  their  life, 
and  they  will  be  constantly  seeking  to  bring  every  power 

1 1  These.  5  : 23.  ' Rom.  12 : 1. 


474  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  their  being  into  harmony  with  the  laws  that  will  promote 
their  ahility  to  do  his  will.  They  will  not,  by  the  indulgence 
of  appetite  or  passion,  enfeeble  or  defile  the  offering  which 
they  present  to  their  heavenly  Father. 

Says  Peter,  "  Abstain  from  fleshly  lusts,  which  war  against 
the  soul." l  Every  sinful  gratification  tends  to  benumb  the 
faculties  and  deaden  the  mental-  and  spiritual  perceptions, 
and  the  Word  or  the  Spirit  of  God  can  make  but  a  feeble 
impression  upon  the  heart.  Paul  writes  to  the  Corinthians, 
"  Let  us  cleanse  ourselves  from  all  filthiness  of  the  flesh  and 
spirit,  perfecting  holiness  in  the  fear  of  God."2  And  with 
the  fruits  of  the  Spirit, — "  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffering, 
gentleness,  goodness,  faith,  meekness," — he  classes  temper- 


ance.3 


Notwithstanding  these  inspired  declarations,  how  many 
professed  Christians  are  enfeebling  their  powers  in  the  pur- 
suit of  gain  or  the  worship  of  fashion;  how  many  are  de- 
basing their  godlike  manhood  by  gluttony,  by  wine-drinking, 
by  forbidden  pleasure.  And  the  church,  instead  of  rebuking, 
too  often  encourages  the  evil  by  appealing  to  appetite,  to 
desire  for  gain,  or  love  of  pleasure,  to  replenish  her  treasury, 
which  love  for  Christ  is  too  feeble  to  supply.  Were  Jesus 
to  enter  the  churches  of  to-day,  and  behold  the  feasting  and 
unholy  traffic  there  conducted  in  the  name  of  religion, 
would  he  not  drive  out  those  desecrators,  as  he  banished  the 
money-changers  from  the  temple  ? 

The  apostle  James  declares  that  the  wisdom  from  above 
is  "first  pure."  Had  he  encountered  those  who  take  the* 
precious  name  of  Jesus  upon  lips  defiled  by  tol»a< •< •<>,  tho<«- 
whose  breath  and  person  are  contaminated  by  its  foul  odor, 
and  who  pollute  the  air  of  heaven,  and  force  all  about  them 
to  inhale  the  poison, — had  the  apostle  come  in  contact  with 
a  practice  so  opposed  to  the  purity  of  the  gospel,  would  he 
not  have  denounced  it  as  "earthly,  sensual,  devilish"? 
Slaves  of  tobacco,  claiming  the  blessing  of  entire  sanctifi- 

1 1  Pet.  2:11.  - 2  Cor.  7:1.          s  Oal.  5  : 22,  23. 


MODERN  RE  VIVALS.  475 


cation,  talk  of  their  hope  of  Heaven;  but  God's  Word  plainly 
declares  that  "there  shall  in  nowise  enter  into  it  anything 
thatdefileth."1 

"Know  ye  not  that  your  body  is  the  temple  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  which  is  in  you,  which  ye  have  of  God,  and  ye  are 
not  your  own?  for  ye  are  bought  with  a  price;  therefore 
glorify  God  in  your  body,  and  in  your  spirit,  which  are 
God's."'2  He  whose  body  is  the  temple  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
will  not  be  enslaved  by  a  pernicious  habit.  His  powers 
belong  to  Christ,  who  has  bought  him  with  the  price  of 
blood.  His  property  is  the  Lord's.  How  could  he  be  guilt- 
less in  squandering  this  intrusted  capital?  Professed  Chris- 
tians yearly  expend  an  immense  sum  upon  useless  and  per- 
nicious indulgences,  while  souls  are  perishing  for  the  word 
of  life.  God  is  robbed  in  tithes  and  offerings,  while  they 
consume  upon  the  altar  of  destroying  lust  more  than  they 
give  to  relieve  the  poor  or  for  the  support  of  the  gospel.  If 
all  who  profess  to  be  followers  of  Christ  were  truly  sanctified, 
their  means,  instead  of  being  spent  for  needless  and  even 
hurtful  indulgences,  would  be  turned  into  the  Lord's  treasury, 
and  Christians  would  set  an  example  of  temperance,  self- 
denial,  and  self-sacrifice.  Then  they  would  be  the  light  of 
the  world. 

The  world  is  given  up  to  self-indulgence.  "  The  lust  of 
the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the  eye,  and  the  pride  of  life,"  control 
the  masses  of  the  people.  But  Christ's  followers  have  a 
holier  calling.  "Come  out  from  among  them,  and  be  ye 
separate,  saith  the  Lord,  and  touch  not  the  unclean."  In 
the  light  of  God's  Word  we  are  justified  in  declaring  that 
sanctification  cannot  be  genuine  which  does  network  this 
utter  renunciation  of  the  sinful  pursuits  and  gratifications 
of  the  world. 

To  those  who  comply  with  the  conditions,  Come  out 
from  among  them,  and  be  ye  separate,  and  touch  not  the 
unclean,  God's  promise  is,  "I  will  receive  you,  and  will 
1  Rev.  21:27.  3 1  Cor.  6  : 19,  20, 


476  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


be  a  Father  unto  you,  and  ye  shall  be  my  sons  and 
daughters,  saith  the  Lord  Almighty." l  It  is  the  privilege 
and  the  duty  of  every  Christian  to  have  a  rich  and  abundant 
experience  in  the  things  of  God.  "  I  am  the  light  of  the 
world,"  said  Jesus.  "  He  that  followeth  me  shall  not  walk 
in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the  light  of  life."2  "The  path 
of  the  just  is  as  the  shining  light,  that  shineth  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day." 3  Every  step  of  faith  and  obe- 
dience brings  the  soul  into  closer  connection  with  the  Light 
of  the  world,  in  whom  "  there  is  no  darkness  at  all."  The 
bright  beams  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  shine  upon  the 
servants  of  God,  and  they  are  to  reflect  his  rays.  As  the 
stars  tell  us  that  there  is  a  great  light  in  Heaven  with  whose 
glory  they  are  made  bright,  so  Christians  are  to  make  it 
manifest  that  there  is  a  God  on  the  throne  of  the  universe 
whose  character  is  worthy  of  praise  and  imitation.  The 
graces  of  his  Spirit,  the  purity  and  holiness  of  his  character, 
will  be  manifest  in  his  witnesses. 

Paul,  in  his  letter  to  the  Colossians,  sets  forth  the  rich 
blessings  granted  to  the  children  of  God.  He  says:  We 
"  do  not  cease  to  pray  for  you,  and  to  desire  that  ye  might 
be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  his  will  in  all  wisdom  and 
spiritual  understanding;  that  ye  might  walk  worthy  of  the 
Lord  unto  all  pleasing,  being  fruitful  in  every  good  work, 
and  increasing  in  the  knowledge  of  God;  strengthened  with 
all  might,  according  to  his  glorious  power,  unto  all  patience 
and  long-suffering  with  joyfulness."  * 

Again  he  writes  of  his  desire  that  the  brethren  at  Ephesus 
might  come  to  understand  the  height  of  the  Christian's 
privilege.  He  opens  before  them,  in  the  most  comprehensive 
language,  the  marvelous  power  and  knowledge  that  they 
might  possess  as  sons  and  daughters  of  the  Most  High.  It 
was  theirs  "  to  be  strengthened  with  might  by  his  Spirit  in 
the  inner  man,"  to  be  "rooted  and  grounded  in  love,"  to 
"comprehend  with  nil  sniiits  wlmt  istlic  bivndth.  ;ind  length, 
1 2  Cor.  6:17,  18.  '  John  8:12.  3  Prov.  4:18.  *  Col.  1  :  9-11. 


MODERN  REVIVALS.  477 


and  depth,  and  height;  and  to  know  the  love  of  Christ,  which 
passeth  knowledge."  But  the  prayer  of  the  apostle  reaches 
the  climax  of  privilege  when  he  prays  that  "ye  might  be 
tilled  with  all  the  fullness  of , God." l 

Here  are  revealed  the  heights  of  attainment  that  we  may 
reach  through  faith  in  the  promises  of  our  heavenly  Father, 
when  we  fulfill  his  requirements.  Through  the  merits  of 
Christ,  we  have  access  to  the  throne  of  infinite  power.  "He 
that  spared  not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered  him  up  for  us 
all,  how  shall  he  not  with  him  also  freely  give  us  all  things?  "" 
The  Father  gave  his  Spirit  without  measure  to  his  Son,  and 
we  also  may  partake  of  its  fullness.  Jesus  says:  "  If  ye  then, 
being  evil,  know  how  to  give  good  gifts  unto  your  children, 
how  much  more  shall  your  heavenly  Father  give  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  them  that  ask  him  ?  " :  "  If  ye  shall  ask  anything 
in  my  name,  I  will  do  it."  "  Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive,  that 
your  joy  may  be  full."  * 

While  the  Christian's  life  will  be  characterized  by  humil- 
ity, it  should  not  be  marked  with  sadness  and  self-deprecia- 
tion. It  is  the  privilege  of  every  one  to  so  live  that  God 
will  approve  and  bless  him.  It  is  not  the  will  of  our  heav- 
enly Father  that  we  should  be  ever  under  condemnation  and 
darkness.  There  is  no  evidence  of  true  humility  in  going 
with  the  head  bowed  down  and  the  heart  filled  with  thoughts 
of  self.  We  may  go  to  Jesus  and  be  cleansed,  and  stand  be- 
fore the  law  without  shame  and  remorse.  "  There  is  there- 
fore now  no  condemnation  to  them  which  are  in  Christ 
Jesus,  who  walk  not  after  the  flesh,  but  after  the  Spirit."5 

Through  Jesus  the  fallen  sons  of  Adam  become  "  sons  of 
God."  "  Both  he  that  sanctifieth  and  they  that  are  sanctified 
are  all  of  one;  for  which  cause  he  is  not  ashamed  to  call 
them  brethren." 6  The  Christian's  life  should  be  one  of 
faith,  of  victory,  and  joy  in  God.  "  Whatsoever  is  born  of 
God  overcometh  the  world;  and  this  is  the  victory  that  over- 

J  Eph.  3  : 16-19.  a  Rom.  8  :  32.  3  Luke  1 1  : 13. 

*  John  14  : 14;  16  : 24.          »llom.  8  : 1.  «Meb.  2  :  U. 


478  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


cometh  the  world,  even  our  faith."1  Truly  spake  God's 
servant  Nehemiah,  "  The  joy  of  the  Lord  is  your  strength."2 
And  says  Paul:  "Rejoice  in  the  Lord  alway;  and  again  I 
say,  Rejoice."  "Rejoice  evermore.  Pray  without  ceasing. 
In  everything  give  thanks;  for  this  is  the  will  of  God  in 
Christ  Jesus  concerning  you." 3 

Such  are  the  fruits  of  Bible  conversion  and  sanctificatlon ; 
and  it  is  because  the  great  principles  of  righteousness  sot 
forth  in  the  law  of  God  are  so  indifferently  regarded  by  the 
Christian  world,  that  these  fruits  are  so  rarely  witnessed. 
This  is  why  there  is  manifest  so  little  of  that  deep,  abiding 
work  of  the  Spirit  of  God  which  marked  revivals  in  former 
years. 

It  is  by  beholding  that  we  become  changed.  And  as  those 
sacred  precepts  in  which  God  has  opened  to  men  the  perfec- 
tion and  holiness  of  his  character  are  neglected,  and  the 
minds  of  the  people  are  attracted  to  human  teachings  and 
theories,  what  marvel  that  there  has  followed  a  decline  of 
living  piety  in  the  church.  Saith  the  Lord,  "They  have 
forsaken  me  the  fountain  of  living  waters,  and  hewed  them 
out  cisterns,  broken  cisterns,  that  can  hold  no  water." 4 

"  Blessed  is  the  man  that  walketh  not  in  the  counsel  of  the 
ungodly.  .  .  .  But  his  delight  is  in  the  law  of  the  Lord; 
and  in  his  law  doth  he  meditate  day  and  night.  And  he 
shall  be  like  a  tree  planted  by  the  rivers  of  water,  that 
bringeth  forth  his  fruit  in  his  season;  his  leaf  also  shall  not 
wither;  and  whatsoever  he  doeth  shall  prosper."6  It  is 
only  as  the  law  of  God  is  restored  to  its  rightful  position 
that  there  can  be  a  revival  of  primitive  faith  and  o-odli- 
ness  among  his  professed  people.  "Thus  saith  the  Lord, 
Stand  ye  in  the  ways,  ;m<l  sec.  and  ask  lor  the  old  paths. 
where  is  the  good  way,  and  walk  therein,  and  ye  shall  find 
rest  for  your  souls."  * 

1  1  John  5:4.        *  Neh.  8  : 10.        :!  Phil.  4  : 4 ;  1  These..  5  :  16-1& 
*  Jer.  2  : 13.  6  Ps.  1  :  1-3.        6  Jer.  6 :  16. 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 


THE  INVESTIGATIVE  JUDGMENT. 

"I  BEHELD,"  says  the  prophet  Daniel,  "till  thrones  were 
placed,  and  One  that  was  ancient  of  days  did  sit.  His  rai- 
ment was  white  as  snow,  and  the  hair  of  his  head  like  pure 
wool;  his  throne  was  fiery  flames,  and  the  wheels  thereof 
hurmng'fire.  A  fiery  stream  issued  and  came  forth  from 
before  him;  thousand  thousands  ministered  unto  him,  and 
ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  stood  before  him;  the 
Judgment  was  set,  and  the  books  were  opened."1 

Tli us  was  presented  to  the  prophet's  vision  the  great  and 
solemn  day  when  the  characters  and  the  lives  of  men  should 
pass  in  review  before  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth,  and  to  every 
man  should  be  rendered  "according  to  his  works."  The 
Ancient  of  days  is  God  the  Father.  Says  the  psalmist, 
"  Before  the  mountains  were  brought  forth,  or  ever  thou 
hadst  formed  the  earth  and  the  world,  even  from  everlasting 
to  everlasting,  thou  art  God." 2  It  is  he,  the  source  of  all 
being,  and  the  fountain  of  all  law,  that  is  to  preside  in  the 
Judgment.  And  holy  angels,  as  ministers  and  witnesses,  in 
number  "  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands 
of  thousands,"  attend  this  great  tribunal. 

"  And,  behold,  one  like  the  Son  of  man  came  with  the 
clouds  of  heaven,  and  came  to  the  Ancient  of  days,  and  they 
brought  him  near  before  him.  And  there  was  given  him 
dominion,  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that  all  people,  nations, 
and  languages,  should  serve  him ;  his  dominion  is  an  ever- 
lasting dominion,  which  shall  not  pass  away." 3  The  coming 
of  Christ  here  described  is  not  his  second  coming  to  the 

1  Dan.  7  : 9,  10,  Revised  Version.     2  Ps.  90  : 2.     3  Dan.  7  : 13, 14- 
35  (479) 


480  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


earth.  He  comes  to  the  Ancient  of  days  in  Heaven  to  receive 
dominion,  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  which  will  be  given 
him  at  the  close  of  his  work  as  a  mediator.  It  is  this  com- 
ing, and  not  his  second  advent  to  the  earth,  that  was  foretold 
in  prophecy  to  take  place  at  the  termination  of  the  2300 
days,  in  1844.  Attended  by  heavenly  angels,  our  great  High 
Priest  enters  the  holy  of  holies,  and  there  appears  in  the 
presence  of  God,  to  engage  in  the  last  acts  of  his  ministration 
in  behalf  of  man, — to  perform  the  work  of  investigative 
Judgment,  and  to  make  an  atonement  for  all  who  are  shown 
to  be  entitled  to  its  benefits. 

In  the  typical  service,  only  those  who  had  come  before 
God  with  confession  and  repentance,  and  whose  sins,  through 
the  blood  of  the  sin-offering,  were  transferred  to  the  sanct- 
uary, had  a  part  in  the  service  of  the  day  of  atonement.  So 
in  the  great  day  of  final  atonement  and  investigative  Judg- 
ment, the  only  cases  considered  are  those  of  the  professed 
people  of  God.  The  judgment  of  the  wicked  is  a  distinct 
and  separate  work,  and  takes  place  at  a  later  period.  "  Judg- 
ment must  begin  at  the  house  of  God;  and  if  it  first  be- 
gin at  us,  what  shall  the  end  be  of  them  that  obey  not  the 
gospel?"1 

The  books  of  record  in  Heaven,  in  which  the  names  and 
the  deeds  of  men  are  registered,  are  to  determine  the  decis- 
ions of  the  Judgment.  Says  the  prophet  Daniel,  "  The  Judg- 
ment was  set,  and  the  books  were  opened."  The  Revelator, 
describing  the  same  scene,  adds,  "Another  book  was  opened, 
which  is  the  book  of  life;  and  the  dead  were  judged  out  of 
those  things  which  were  written  in  the  books,  according  to 
their  works."2 

The  book  of  life  contains  the  names  of  all  who  have  ever 
entered  the  service  of  God.  Jesus  bade  his  disciples,  "  Re- 
joice, because  your  names  are  written  in  Heaven." 3  Paul 
speaks  of  his  faithful  fellow- workers,  "  whose  names  are  in 
the  book  of  life."4  Daniel,  looking  down  to  "a  time  of 

1 1  Pet.  4:17.     2  Rev.  20  :  12.      3  Luke  10  :  20.     *  Phil.  4  : 3. 


THE  INVmtTIGA  TIVE  JUDGMENT. 


481 


trouble,  such  as  never  was,"  declares  that  God's  people  shall 
be  delivered,  "  everyone  that  shall  be  found  written  in  the 
book."  1  And  the  Revelator  says  that  those  only  shall  enter 
the  city  of  God  whose  names  "  are  written  in  the  Lamb's 
book  of  life." 2 

"  A  book  of  remembrance  "  is  written  before  God,  in  which 
are  recorded  the  good  deeds  of  "  them  that  feared  the  Lord, 
and  that  thought  upon  his  name." a  Their  words  of  faith, 
their  acts  of  love,  are  registered  in  Heaven.  Nehemiah 
refers  to  this  when  lie  says,  "Remember  me,  0  my  God, 
.  .  .  and  wipe  not  out  my  good  deeds  that  I  have  done 
for  the  house  of  my  God." *  In  the  book  of  God's  remem- 
brance every  deed  of  righteousness  is  immortalized.  There 
every  temptation  resisted,  every  evil  overcome,  every  word  of 
tender  pity  expressed,  is  faithfully  chronicled.  And  every 
act  of  sacrifice,  every  suffering  and  sorrow  endured  for 
Christ's  sake,  is  recorded.  Says  the  psalmist,  "  Thou  tellest 
my  wanderings.  Put  thou  my  tears  into  thy  bottle;  are 
they  not  in  thy  book?"5 

There  is  a  record  also  of  the  sins  of  men.  "  For  God  shall 
bring  every  work  into  Judgment,  with  every  secret  thing, 
whether  it  be  good,  or  whether  it  be  evil." 6  "  Every  idle 
word  that  men  shall  speak,  they  shall  give  account  thereof 
in  the  day  of  Judgment."  Said  the  Saviour,  "By  thy  words 
thou  shalt  be  justified,  and  by  thy  words  thou  shalt  be  con- 
demned."7 The  secret  purposes  and  motives  appear  in  the 
unerring  register;  for  God  "will  bring  to  light  the  hidden 
things  of  darkness,  and  will  make  manifest  the  counsels  of  the 
hearts."8  "Behold,  it  is  written  before  me,  .  .  .  your 
iniquities,  and  the  iniquities  of  your  fathers  together,  saith 
the  Lord."9 

Every  man's  work  passes  in  review  before  God,  and  is 
registered  for  faithfulness  or  unfaithfulness.  Opposite  each 

1  Dan  .12:1.  2  Rev.  21  : 27 .  3  Mai.  3  : 16. 

*Neh.  13:14.  5 1's.  56:8.  «Eccl.  12:14. 

7  Matt.  12  :  30,  37.     8 1  Cor.  4  : 5.  9Isa.  65  : 6,  7. 


482  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


name  in  the  books  of  Heaven  is  entered,  with  terrible  exact- 
ness, every  wrong  word,  every  selfish  act,  every  unfulfilled 
duty,  and  every  secret  sin,  with  every  artful  dissembling. 
Heaven-sent  warnings  or  reproofs  neglected,  wasted  moments, 
unimproved  opportunities,  the  influence  exerted  for  good  or 
for  evil,  with  its  far-reaching  results,  all  are  chronicled  by 
the  recording  angel. 

The  law  of  God  is  the  standard  by  which  the  characters 
and  the  lives  of  men  will  be  tested  in  the  Judgment.  Says 
the  wise  man:  "Fear  God,  and  keep  his  commandments; 
for  this  is  the  whole  duty  of  man.  For  God  shall  bring 
every  work  into  Judgment." l  The  apostle  James  admon- 
ishes his  brethren,  "  So  speak  ye,  and  so  do,  as  they  that  shall 
be  judged  by  the  law  of  liberty."2 

Those  who  in  the  Judgment  are  "  accounted  worthy,"  will 
have  a  part  in  the  resurrection  of  the  just.  Jesus  sai<l, 
"They  which  shall  be  accounted  worthy  to  obtain  that- 
world,  and  the  resurrection  from  the  dead,  .  .  .  un- 
equal unto  the  angels;  and  are  the  children  of  God,  being 
the  children  of  the  resurrection."3  And  again  he  declares 
that  "they  that  have  done  good"  shall  come  forth  "unto 
the  resurrection  of  life."4  The  righteous  dead  will  not  be 
raised  until  after  the  Judgment  at  which  they  are  accounted 
worthy  of  "the  resurrection  of  life."  Hence  they  will  not 
be  present  in  person  at  the  tribunal  when  their  records  are 
examined,  and  their  eases  decided. 

Jesus  will  appear  as  their  advocate,  .to  plead  in  their 
behalf  before  God.  "If  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate 
with  the  Father,  Jesus  Christ  the.  righteous."'  "For  Christ 
is  not  entered  into  the  holy  places  made  with  hands,  which 
are  the  figures  of  the  true;  but  into  Heaven  itself,  now  to 
appear  in  the  presence  of  God  for  us."  "Wherefore  he  is 
able  also  to  save  them  to  the  uttermost  that  come  unto  God 
by  him,  seeing  he  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  them."1 

i  Eccl.  12  :  13,  14.  3  Janic.s  2  :  12.  *Luk<-  20  :  3.1,  3<». 

*John5:29.  »1  John  2:1.  «Heb.  9  :24;  7  :25. 


THE  INVEST1GA  TIVK  JUDGMENT.  483 

As  the  books  of  record  are  opened  in  the  Judgment,  the 
lives  of  all  who  have  believed  on  Jesus  come  in  review  \ 
before  God.  Beginning  with  those  who  first  lived  upon  tlfe 
earth,  our  Advocate  presents  the  cases  of  each  successive 
generation,  and  closes  with  the  living.  Every  name  is 
mentioned,  every  case  closely  investigated.  Names  are  ac- 
cepted, names  rejected.  When  any  have  sins  remaining 
upon  the  books  of  record,  unrepented  of  and  unforgiven, 
their  names  will  be  blotted  out  of  the  book  of  life,  and  the 
record  of  their  good  deeds  will  be  erased  from  the  book  of 
God's  remembrance.  The  Lord  declared  to  Moses,  "Who- 
soever hath  sinned  against  me,  him  will  I  blot  out  of  my 
book." l  And  says  the  prophet  Ezekiel,  "  When  the  righteous 
turneth  away  from  his  righteousness,  and  committeth  in- 
iquity, .  .  .  all  his  righteousness  that  he  hath  done 
shall  not  be  mentioned."  s 

All  who  have  truly  repented  of  sin,  and  by  faith  claimed 
the  blood  of  Christ  as  their  atoning  sacrifice,  have  had  pardon 
entered  against  their  names  in  the  books  of  Heaven ;  as  they 
have  become  partakers  of  tliQ  righteousness  of  Christ,  and 
their  characters  are  found  to  be  in  harmony  with  the  law 
of  God,  their  sins  will  be  blotted  out,  and  they  themselves 
will  be  accounted  worthy  of  eternal  life.  The  Lord  declares, 
by  the  prophet  Isaiah,  "  I,  even  I,  am  he  that  blotteth  out 
thy  transgressions  for  mine  own  sake,  and  will  not  remember 
thy  sins."3  Said  Jesus,  "He  that  overcometh,  the  same 
shall  be  clothed  in  white  raiment;  and  I  will  not  blot  out 
his  name  out  of  the  book  of  life,  but  I  will  confess  his  name 
before  my  Father,  and  before  his  angels."  "  Whosoever  there- 
fore shall  confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  confess  also 
before  my  Father  which  is  in  Heaven.  But  whosoever 
shall  deny  me  before  men,  him  will  I  also  deny  before  my 
Father  which  is  in  Heaven."  * 

The  deepest  interest  manifested  among  men   in   the  de- 

1  Ex.  32  :  33.  a  Eze.  1 8  : 24.  3  laa.  43  : 25. 

*Rev.  3:5j  Matt.  10:32,  33. 


484  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


cisions  of  earthly  tribunals  but  faintly  represents  the  interest 
evinced  in  the  heavenly  courts  when  the  names  entered  in 
the  book  of  life  come  up  in  review  before  the  Judge  of  all 
the  earth.  The  divine  Intercessor  presents  the  plea  that  all 
who  have  overcome  through  faith  in  his  blood  be  forgiven 
their  transgressions,  that  they  be  restored  to  their  Eden 
home,  and  crowned  as  joint-heirs  with  himself  to  the  "  first 
dominion."1  Satan,  in  his  efforts  to  deceive  and  tempt  our 
race,  had  thought  to  frustrate  the  divine  plan  in  man's 
creation;  but  Christ  now  asks  that  this  plan  be  carried  into 
effect,  as  if  man  had  never  fallen.  He  asks  for  his  people 
not  only  pardon  and  justification,  full  and  complete,  but  a 
share  in  his  glory  and  a  seat  upon  his  throne. 

While  Jesus  is  pleading  for  the  subjects  of  his  grace,  Satan 
accuses  them  before  God  as  transgressors.  The  great  de- 
ceiver has  sought  to  lead  them  into  skepticism,  to  cause 
them  to  lose  confidence  in  God,  to  separate  themselves  from 
his  love,  and  to  break  his  law.  Now  he  points  to  the  record 
of  their  lives,  to  the  defects  of  character,  the  unlikeness  to 
Christ,  which  has  dishonored  their  Redeemer,  to  all  the  sins 
that  he  has  tempted  them  to  commit,  and  because  of  these 
he  claims  them  as  his  subjects. 

Jesus  does  not  excuse  their  sins,  but  shows  their  penitence 
and  faith,  and,  claiming  for  them  forgiveness,  he  lifts  his 
wounded  hands  before  the  Father  and  the  holy  angels,  say- 
ing, "I  know  them  by  name.  I  have  graven  them  on  the 
palms  of  my  hands.  '  The  sacrifices  of  God  are  a  broken 
spirit;  a  broken  and  a  contrite  heart,  0  God,  thou  wilt  not 
despise.'"  And  to  the  accuser  of  his  people  he  declares, 
"The  Lord  rebuke  thee,  0  Satan;  even  the  Lord  that  hath 
chosen  Jerusalem  rebuke  thee.  Is  not  this  a  brand  plucked 
out  of  the  fire?"3  Christ  will  clothe  his  faithful  ones  with 
his  own  righteousness,  that  he  may  present  them  to  his 
Father  "  a  glorious  church,  not  having  spot,  or  wrinkle,  or 
any  such  thing." 4  Their  names  stand  enrolled  in  the  book 

1Micah4:8.          *  Ps.  51:17.         3  Zech.  3:2.          <  Eph.  5:27. 


THE  INVESTIGA  TIVE  JUD GHENT.  485 


of  life,  and  concerning  them  it  is  written,  "  They  shall  walk 
with  me  in  white;  for  they  are  worthy,"1 

Thus  will  be  realized  the  complete  fulfillment  of  the  new- 
covenant  promise,  "  I  will  forgive  their  iniquity,  and  I  will 
remember  their  sin  no  more."  "  In  those  days,  and  in  that 
time,  saith  the  Lord,  the  iniquity  of  Israel  shall  be  sought 
for,  and  there  shall  be  none;  and  the  sins  of  Judah,  and 
they  shall  not  be  found." 2  "  In  that  day  shall  the  branch 
of  the  Lord  be  beautiful  and  glorious,  and  the  fruit  of  the 
earth  shall  be  excellent  and  comely  for  them  that  are  escaped 
of  Israel.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  he  that  is  left  in 
Zion,  and  he  that  remaineth  in  Jerusalem,  shall  be  called 
hoi}7,  even  every  one  that  is  written  among  the  living  in 
Jerusalem."3 

The  work  of  the  investigative  Judgment  and  the  blotting 
out  of  sins  is  to  be  accomplished  before  the  second  advent  of 
the  Lord.  Since  the  dead  are  to  be  judged  out  of  the  things 
written  in  the  books,  it  is  impossible  that  the  sins  of  men 
should  be  blotted  out  until  after  the  Judgment  at  which  their 
cases  are  to  be  investigated.  But  the  apostle  Peter  distinctly 
states  that  the  sins  of  believers  will  be  blotted  out,  "  when 
the  times  of  refreshing  shall  come  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord ;  and  he  shall  send  Jesus  Christ."  *  When  the  investi- 
gative Judgment  closes,  Christ  will  come,  and  his  reward  is 
with  him  to  give  to  every  man  as  his  work  shall  be. 

In  the  typical  service  the  high  priest,  having  made  the 
atonement  for  Israel,  came  forth  and  blessed  the  congregation. 
So  Christ,  at  the  close  of  his  work  as  a  mediator,  will  appear, 
"without  sin  unto  salvation,"5  to  bless  his  waiting  people 
with  eternal  life.  As  the  priest,  in  removing  the  sins  from 
the  sanctuary,  confessed  them  upon  the  head  of  the  scape- 
goat, so  Christ  will  place  all  these  sins  upon  Satan,  the  orig- 
inator and  instigator  of  sin.  The  scape-goat,  bearing  the 
sins  of  Israel,  was  sent  away  "unto  a  land  not  inhabited;  " 
so  Satan,  bearing  the  guilt  of  all  the  sins  which  he  has 

1  Rev.  3:4.  2Jer.  31  :34;  50:20.  3Isa.4:2,  3. 

*Acts  3  : 19,  20.    5  Heb.  9  : 28.  6  Lev.  16  :  22. 


486  THE  0  7?  AM  T  CO  XTK  O  VEKS ) '. 

caused  God's  people  to  commit,  will  be  for  a  thousand  years 
confined  to  the  earth,  which  will  then  l>e  desolate,  without 
inhabitant,  and  he  will  at  last  suffer  the  full  penalty  of  sin, 
in  the  fires  that  shall  destroy  all  the  wicked.  Thus  the  great 
plan  of  redemption  will  reach  its  accomplishment  in  the 
final  eradication  of  sin,  and  the  deliverance  of  all  who  have 
been  willing  to  renounce  evil. 

At  the  time  appointed  for  the  Judgment — the  close  of  the 
2300  days,  in  1844 — began  the  work  of  investigation  and 
blotting  out  of  sins.  All  wrho  have  ever  taken  upon  them- 
selves the  name  of  Christ  must  pass  its  searching  scrutiny. 
Both  the  living  and  the  dead  are  to  be  judged  "out  of  those 
tilings  which  were  written  in  the  books,  according  to  their 
works." 

Sins  that  have  not  been  repented  of  and  forsaken  will  not 
be  pardoned,  and  blotted  out  of  the  books  of  record,  but  will 
stand  to  witness  against  the  sinner  in  the  day  of  God.  lie 
may  have  committed  his  evil  deeds  in  the  light  of  day  or  in 
the  darkness. of  night;  but  they  were  open  and  manifest 
before  Him  with  whom  we  have  to  do.  Angels  of  Clod  wit- 
nessed each  sin,  and  registered  it  in  the  unerring  records. 
Sin  may  be  concealed,  denied,  covered  up  from  father, 
mother,  wife,  children,  and  associates.  No  one  but  the 
guilt)7  actors  may  cherish  the  least  suspicion  of  the  wrong; 
but  it  is  laid  bare  before  the  intelligencies  of  Heaven. 
The  darkness  of  the  darkest  night,  the  secrecy  of  all  de- 
ceptive arts,  is  not  sufficient  to  veil  one  thought  from  the 
knowledge  of  the  Eternal.  God  has  an  exact  record  of 
every  unjust  account  and  every  unfair  dealing.  He  is  not 
deceived  by  appearances  of  piety.  He  makes  110  mistakes 
in  his  estimation  of  character.  Men  may  be  deceived  by 
11  lose  who  are  corrupt  in  heart,  but  God  pierces  all  dis- 
guises, and  reads  the  inner  life. 

How  solemn  is  the  thought !  Day  after  day,  passing  into 
eternity,  bears  its  burden  of  records  for  the  books  of  Heaven. 
Words  once  spoken,  deeds  once  done,  can  never  be  recalled. 


THE  JXVESTTGA  TTVE  JUDGMENT.  487 


Angels  have,  registered  both  the  good  and  the  evil.  The 
mightiest  conqueror  upon  the  earth  cannot  call  back  the 
record  of  even  a  single  day.  Our  acts,  our  words,  even  our 
most  secret  motives,  all  have  their  weight  in  deciding  .our 
destiny  for  weal  or  woe.  Though  they  may  be  forgotten  by 
us,  they  will  bear  their  testimony  to  justify  or  to  condemn. 

As  the  features  of  the  countenance  are  reproduced  with 
unerring  accuracy  on  the  polished  plate  of  the  artist,  so  the 
character  is  faithfully  delineated  in  the  books  above.  Yet 
how  little  solicitude  is  felt  concerning  that  record  which  is  to 
meet  the  gaze  of  heavenly  beings.  Could  the  veil  which 
separates  the  visible  from  the  invisible  world  be  swept  back, 
and  the  children  of  men  behold  an  angel  recording  every 
word  and  deed,  which  they  must  meet  again  in  the  Judg- 
ment, how  many  words  that  are  daily  uttered  would  remain 
unspoken;  how  many  deeds  would  remain  undone. 

In  the  Judgment,  the  use  made  of  every  talent  will  be 
scrutinized.  How  have  we  employed  the  capital  lent  us  of 
I  leaven?  Will  the  Lord  at  his  coming  receive  his  own  with 
usury?  Have  we  improved  the  powers  intrusted  us,  in  hand 
and  heart  and  brain,  to  the  glory  of  God  and  the  blessing  of 
the  world?  How  have  we  used  our  time,  our  pen,  our  voice, 
our  money,  our  influence?  What  have  we  done  for  Christ, 
in  the  person  of  the  poor,  the  afflicted,  the  orphan,  or  the 
widow?  God  lias  made  us  the  depositary  of  his  holy  Word; 
what  have  we  done  with  the  light  and  truth  given  us  to 
make  men  wise  unto  salvation?  No  value  is  attached  to  a 
mere  profession  of  faith  in  Christ;  only  the  love  which  is 
shown  by  works  is  counted  genuine.  Yet  it  is  love  alone 
which  in  the  sight  of  Heaven  makes  any  act  of  value. 
Whatever  is  done  from  love,  however  small  it  may  appear 
in  the  estimation  of  men,  is  accepted  and  rewarded  of  God. 

The  hidden  selfishness  of  men  stands  revealed  in  the 
books  of  Heaven.  There  is  the  record  of  unfulfilled  duties 
to  their  fellow-men,  of  forgetfulness  of  the  Saviour's  claims. 
There  they  will  see  how  often  were  given  to  Satan  the  time, 


488  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


thought,  and  strength  that  belonged  to  Christ.  Sad  is  the 
record  which  angels  bear  to  Heaven.  Intelligent  beings, 
professed  followers  of  Christ,  are  absorbed  in  the  acquire- 
ment of  worldly  possessions,  or  the  enjoyment  of  earthhr 
pleasures.  Money,  time,  and  strength  are  sacrificed  for  dis- 
play and  self-indulgence;  but  few  are  the  moments  devoted 
to  prayer,  to  the  searching  of  the  Scriptures,  to  humiliation 
of  soul  and  confession  of  sin. 

Satan  invents  unnumbered  schemes  to  occupy  our  minds 
that  they  may  not  dwell  upon  the  very  work  with  which  we 
ought  to  be  best  acquainted.  The  arch-deceiver  hates  the 
great  truths  that  bring  to  view  an  atoning  sacrifice  and  an 
all-powerful  Mediator.  He  knows  that  with  him  everything 
depends  on  his  diverting  minds  from  Jesus  and  his  truth. 

Those  who  would  share  the  benefits  of  the  Saviour's 
mediation  should  permit  nothing  to  interfere  with  their 
duty  to  perfect  holiness  in  the  fear  of  God.  The  precious 
hours,  instead  of  being  given  to  pleasure,  to  display,  or  to 
gain-seeking,  should  be  devoted  to  an  earnest,  prayerful 
study  of  the  Word  of  truth.  The  subject  of  the  sanctuary 
and  the  investigative  Judgment  should  be  clearly  under- 
stood by  the  people  of  God.  All  need  a  knowledge  for 
themselves  of  the  position  and  work  of  their  great  High 
Priest.  Otherwise,  it  wrill  be  impossible  for  them  to  exercise 
the  faith  which  is  essential  at  this  time,  or  to  occupy  the 
position  which  God  designs  them  to  fill.  Every  individual 
has  a  soul  to  save  or  to  lose.  Each  has  a  case  pending  at 
the  bar  of  God.  Each  must  meet  the  great  Judge  face  to 
face.  How  important,  then,  that  every  mind  contemplate 
often  the  solemn  scene  when  the  Judgment  shall  sit  and 
the  books  shall  be  opened,  when,  with  Daniel,  every  indi- 
vidual must  stand  in  his  lot,  at  the  end  of  the  days. 

All  who  have  received  the  light  upon  these  subjects  are 
to  bear  testimony  of  the  great  truths  which  God  has  com- 
mitted to  them.  The  sanctuary  in  Heaven  is  the  very  center 
of  Christ's  work  in  behalf  of  men.  It  concerns  every  soul 


TTIE  1NVESTIOA  TTVE  JUDGMENT.  489 


living  upon  the  earth.  It  opens  to  view  the  plan  of  re- 
demption, bringing  us  down  to  the  very  close  of  time,  and 
revealing  the  triumphant  issue  of  the  contest  between  right- 
eousness and  sin.  It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  all 
should  thoroughly'  investigate  these  subjects,  and  be  able 
to  give  an  answer  to  every  one  that  asketh  them  a  reason 
of  the  hope  that  is  in  them. 

The  intercession  of  Christ  in  man's  behalf  in  the  sanctuary 
above  is  as  essential  to  the  plan  of  salvation  as  was  his  death 
upon  the  cross.  By  his  death  he  began  that  work  which 
after  his  resurrection  he  ascended  to  complete  in  Heaven. 
We  must  by  faith  enter  within  the  veil,  "  whither  the  fore- 
runner is  for  us  entered."1  There  the  light  from  the  cross 
of  Calvary  is  reflected.  There  we  may  gain  a  clearer  in- 
sight into  the  mysteries  of  redemption.  The  salvation  of 
man  is  accomplished  at  an  infinite  expense  to  Heaven;  the 
sacrifice  made  is  equal  to  the  broadest  demands  of  the  broken 
law  of  God.  Jesus  has  opened  the  way  to  the  Father's 
throne,  and  through  his  mediation  the  sincere  desire  of  all 
who  come  to  him  in  faith  may  be  presented  before  God. 

"He  that  covereth  his  sins  shall  not  prosper;  but  whoso 
confesseth  and  forsaketh  them  shall  have  mercy." 2  If  those 
who  hide  and  excuse  their  faults  could  see  how  Satan  exults 
over  them,  how  he  taunts  Christ  and  holy  angels  with  their 
course,  they  would  make  haste  to  confess  their  sins  and  to 
put  them  away.  Through  defects  in  the  character,  Satan 
works  to  gain  control  of  the  whole  mind,  and  he  knows  that 
if  these  defects  are  cherished,  he  will  succeed.  Therefore  he 
is  constantly  seeking  to  deceive  the  followers  of  Christ  with 
his  fatal  sophistry  that  it  is  impossible  for  them  to  overcome. 
But  Jesus  pleads  in  their  behalf  his  wounded  hands,  his 
bruised  body;  and  he  declares  to  all  who  would  follow  him, 
"My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee."3  "Take  my  yoke  upon 
you,  and  learn  of  me;  for  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart; 
and  ye  shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For  my  yoke  is  easy, 

!Heb.  6:20.  2Prov.28:13.  3 2  Cor    12:9. 


490  THE    GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


and  my  burden  is  light."1  Let  none,  then,  regard  their 
defects  as  incurable.  God  will  give  faith  and  grace  to  over- 
come them. 

We  are  now  living  in  the  great  day  of  atonement.  In  the 
typical  service,  while  the  high  priest  was  making  the  atone- 
ment for  Israel,  all  were  required  to  afflict  their  souls  by 
repentance  of  sin  and  humiliation  before  the  Lord,  lest  they 
be  cut  off  from  among  the  people.  In  like  manner,  all  who 
would  have  their  names  retained  in  the  book  of  life,  should 
now,  in  the  few  remaining  days  of  their  probation,  afflict 
their  souls  before  God  by  sorrow  for  sin,  and  true  repentance. 
There  must  be  deep,  faithful  searching  of  heart.  The  light, 
frivolous  spirit  indulged  by  so  many  of  professed  Christians 
must  be  put  away.  There  is  earnest  warfare  before  all  who 
would  subdue  the  evil  tendencies  that  strive  for  the  mastery. 
The  work  of  preparation  is  an  individual  work.  We  are 
not  saved  in  groups.  The  purity  and  devotion  of  one  will 
not  offset  the  want  of  these  qualities  in  another.  Though 
all  nations  are  to  pass  in  judgment  before  God,  yet  he  will 
examine  the  case  of  each  individual  with  as  close  and  search- 
ing scrutiny  as  if  there  were  not  another  being  upon  the 
earth.  Every  one  must  be  tested,  and  found  without  spot 
or  wrinkle  or  any  such  thing. 

Solemn  are  the  scenes  connected  with  the  closing  work 
of  the  atonement.  Momentous  are  the  interests  involved 
therein.  The  Judgment  is  now  passing  in  the  sanctuary 
above.  For  more  than  forty  years  this  work  has  been  in 
progress.  Soon — none  know  how  soon — it  will  pass  to  the 
cases  of  the  living.  In  the  awful  presence  of  God  our  lives 
are  to  come  up  in  review.  At  this  time  above  all  others  it 
behooves  every  soul  to  heed  the  Saviour's  admonition, 
"Watch  and  pray;  for  ye  know  not  when  the  time  is,"1 
"If  therefore  thou  shalt  not  watch,  I  will  come  on  thee  as  a 
thief,  and  thou  shalt  not  know  what  hour  I  will  come  upon 
thee."3 

1  Matt.  1 1  :  29,  30.  2  Mark  13  : 33.  »  Rev.  3  : 3. 


THE  TNVESTJGA  TIVE  JUDGMENT.  491 


When  the  work  of  the  investigative  Judgment  closes,  the 
destiny  of  all  will  have  been  decided  for  life  or  death.  Pro- 
bation is  ended  a  short  time  before  the  appearing  of  the 
Lord  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.  Christ  in  the  Revelation, 
looking  forward  to  that  time,  declares:  "He  that  is  unjust, 
let  him  be  unjust  still;  and  he  which  is  filthy,  let  him  be 
filthy  still;  and  he  that  is  righteous,  let  him  be  righteous 
still ;  and  he  that  is  holy,  let  him  be  holy  still.  And,  be- 
hold,  I  come  quickly;  and  my  reward  is  with  me,  to  give 
every  man  according  as  his  work  shall  be." l 

The  righteous  and  the  wicked  will  still  be  living  upon  the 
earth  in  their  mortal  state — men  will  be  planting  and  build- 
ing, eating  and  drinking,  all  unconscious  that  the  final, 
irrevocable  decision  has  been  pronounced  in  the  sanctuary 
above.  Before  the  flood,  after  Noah  entered  the  ark,  God 
shut  him  in,  and  shut  the  ungodly  out;  but  for  seven  days 
the  people,  knowing  not  that  their  doom  was  fixed,  continued 
their  careless,  pleasure-loving  life,  and  mocked  the  warnings 
of  impending  judgment.  "So,"  says  the  Saviour,  "shall  also 
the  coining  of  the  Son  of  man  be."2  Silently,  unnoticed  as 
the  midnight  thief,  will  come  the  decisive  hour  which  marks 
the  fixing  of  every  man's  destiny,  the  final  withdrawal  of 
mercy's  offer  to  guilty  men. 

"Watch  ye  therefore;  .  .  .  lest  coming  suddenly  He 
find  you  sleeping." a  Perilous  is  the  condition  of  those  who, 
growing  weary  of  their  watch,  turn  to  the  attractions  of  the 
world.  While  the  man  of  business  is  absorbed  in  the  pur- 
suit of  gain,  while  the  pleasure-lover  is  seeking  indulgence, 
while  the  daughter  of  fashion  is  arranging  her  adornments, 
— it  may  be  in  that  hour  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth  will 
pronounce  the  sentence,  "  Thou  art  weighed  in  the  balances, 
and  art  found  wanting." 4 

i  Rev.  22  : 1 1,  12.     2  Matt.  24  :  39.     »  Mark  13  .  35>  36.     «  D^.  5  . 27. 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL. 

To  MANY  minds,  the  origin  of  sin  and  the  reason  for  its 
existence  are  a  source  of  great  perplexity.  They  see  the 
work  of  evil,  with  its  terrible  results  of  woe  and  desolation, 
and  they  question  how  all  this  can  exist  under  the  sov- 
ereignty of  One  who  is  infinite  in  wisdom,  in  power,  and 
in  love.  Here  is  a  mystery,  of  which  they  find  no  expla- 
nation. And  in  their  uncertainty  and  doubt,  they  are 
blinded  to  truths  plainly  revealed  in  God's  Word,  and  es- 
sential to  salvation.  There  are  those  who,  in  their  inquiries 
concerning  the  existence  of  sin,  endeavor  to  search  into  that 
which  God  has  never  revealed-  hence  they  find  no  solution 
of  their  difficulties;  and  such  as  are  actuated  by  a  disposition 
to  doubt  and  cavil,  seize  upon  this  as  an  excuse  for  rejecting 
the  words  of  Holy  Writ.  Others,  however,  fail  of  a  satis- 
factory understanding  of  the  great  problem  of  evil,  from  the 
fact  that  tradition  and  misinterpretation  have  obscured  the 
teaching  of  the  Bible  concerning  the  character  of  God,  the 
nature  of  his  government,  and  the  principles  of  his  dealing 
with  sin.  , 

It  is  impossible  to  so  explain  the  origin  of  sin  as  to  give 
a  reason  for  its  existence.  Yet  enough  may  be  understood 
concerning  both  the  origin  and  the  final  disposition  of  sin. 
to  fully  make  manifest  the  justice  and  benevolence  of  God 
in  all  his  dealings  with  evil.  Nothing  is  more  plainly 
taught  in  Scripture  than  that  God  was  in  nowise  responsible 
for  the  entrance  of  sin;  that  there  WMS  n<>  arbitrary  with- 
drawal of  divine  grace,  no  deficiency  in  the  divine  govern- 
ment, that  gave  occasion  for  the  uprising  of  rebellion.  Sin 
(492) 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL.  493 


is  an  intruder,  for  whose  presence  no  reason  can  be  given. 
It  is  mysterious,  unaccountable;  to  excuse  it,  is  to  defend  it. 
Could  excuse  for  it  be  found,  or  cause  be  shown  for  its  ex- 
istence, it  would  cease  to  be  sin.  Our  only  definition  of  sin 
is  that  given  in  the  Word  of  God;  it  is  "the  transgression 
of  the  law;"  it  is  the  outworking  of  a  principle  at  war  with 
the  great  law  of  love  which  is  the  foundation  of  the  divine 
government. 

Before  the  entrance  of  evil,  there  was  peace  and  joy 
throughout  the  universe.  All  was  in  perfect  harmony  with 
the  Creator's  will.  Love  for  God  was  supreme,  love  for  one 
another  impartial.  Christ  the  Word,  the  only  begotten  of 
God,  was  one  with  the  eternal  Father, — one  in  nature,  in 
character,  and  in  purpose, — the  only  being  in  all  the  universe 
that  could  enter  into  all  the  counsels  and  purposes  of  God. 
By  Christ,  the  Father  wrought  in  the  creation  of  all  heavenly 
beings.  "  By  him  were  all  things  created,  that  are  in  Heaven, 
.  .  .  whether  they  be  thrones,  or  dominions,  or  princi- 
palities, or  powers;" l  and  to  Christ,  equally  with  the  Father, 
all  Heaven  gave  allegiance. 

The  law  of  love  being  the  foundation  of  the  government 
of  God,  the  happiness  of  all  created  beings  depended  upon 
their  perfect  accord  with  its  great  principles  of  righteousness. 
God  desires  from  all  his  creatures  the  service  of  love, — 
homage  that  springs  from  an  intelligent  appreciation  of  his 
character.  He  takes  no  pleasure  in  a  forced  allegiance,  and 
to  all  he  grants  freedom  of  will,  that  they  may  render  him 
voluntary  service. 

But  there  was  one  that  chose  to  pervert  this  freedom. 
Sin  originated  with  him,  who,  next  to  Christ,  had  been 
most  honored  of  God,  and  who  stood  highest  in  power  and 
glory  among  the  inhabitants  of  Heaven.  Before  his  fall, 
Lucifer  was  first  of  the  covering  cherubs,  holy  and  undefiled. 
"Thus  saith  the  Lord  God:  Thou  sealest  up  the  sum,  full 
of  wisdom,  and  perfect  in  beauty.  Thou  hast  been  in  Eden 
the  garden  of  God ;  every  precious  stone  was  thy  covering." 


494  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


"Thou,  art  the  anointed  cherub  that  covereth;  and  I  have 
set  thee  so;  thou  wast  upon  the  holy  mountain  of  God;  thou 
hast  walked  up  and  down  in  the  midst  of  the  stones  of  fire. 
Thou  wast  perfect  in  thy  ways  from  the  day  that  thou  wast 
created,  till  iniquity  was  found  in  thee." l 

Lucifer  might  have  remained  in  favor  with  God,  beloved 
and  honored  by  all  the  angelic  host,  exercising  his  noble 
powers  to  bless  others  and  to  glorify  his  Maker.  But,  says 
the  prophet,  "  Thine  heart  was  lifted  up  because  of  thy  beauty, 
thou  hast  corrupted  thy  wisdom  by  reason  of  thy  bright- 
ness."1 Little  by  little,  Lucifer  came  to  indulge  a  desire  for 
self-exaltation.  "  Thou  hast  set  thine  heart  as  the  heart  of 
God."  "Thou  hast  said:  ...  I  will  exalt  my  throne 
above  the  stars  of  God;  I  will  sit  also  upon  the  mount  of 
the  congregation.*'  "I  will  ascend  above  the  heights  of  the 
clouds;  I  will  be  like  the  Most  High."2  Instead  of  seeking 
to  make  God  supreme  in  the  affections  and  allegiance  of  his 
creatures,  it  was  Lucifer's  endeavor  to  win  their  service  and 
homage  to  himself.  And,  coveting  the  honor  which  the 
infinite  Father  had  bestowed  upon  his  Son,  this  prince  of 
angels  aspired  to  power  which  it  was  the  prerogative  of 
Christ  alone  to  wield. 

All  Heaven  had  rejoiced  to  reflect  the  Creator's  glory  and 
to  show  forth  his  praise.  And  while  God  was  thuslionored, 
all  had  been  peace  and  gladness.  But  a  note  of  discord  now 
marred  the  celestial  harmonies.  The  service  and  exaltation 
of  self,  contrary  to  the  Creator's  plan,  awakened  forebodings 
of  evil  in  minds  to  whom  God's  glory  was  supreme.  The 
heavenly  councils  pleaded  with  Lucifer.  The  Son  of  God 
presented  before  him  the  greatness,  the  goodness,  and  the 
justice  of  the  Creator,  and  the  sacred,  urn-hanging  nature 
of  his  law.  God  himself  had  established  the  order  of  Heaven; 
and  in  departing  from  it,  Lucifer  would  dishonor  his  Maker, 
and  bring  ruin  upon  himself.  But  the  warning,  given  in 
infinite  love  and  mercy,  only  aroused  a  spirit  of  resistance, 

1  Eze.  28  : 12-15, 117.     2  Eze .  28  : 6;  Isa.  14  : 13,  14, 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL.  495 


Lucifer  allowed  jealousy  of  Christ  to  prevail,  and  he  became 
the  more  determined. 

Pride  in  his  own  glory  nourished  the  desire  for  supremacy. 
The  high  honors  conferred  upon  Lucifer  were  not  appre- 
ciated as  the  gift  of  God,  and  called  forth  no  gratitude  to 
the  Creator.  He  gloried  in  his  brightness  and  exaltation, 
and  aspired  to  be  equal  with  God.  He  was  beloved  and 
reverenced  by  the  heavenly  host.  Angels  delighted  to  exe- 
cute his  commands,  and  he  was  clothed  with  wisdom  and 
•glory  above  them  all.  Yet  the  Son  of  God  was  the  acknowl- 
edged sovereign  of  Heaven,  one  in  power  and  authority  with 
the  Father.  In  all  the  counsels  of  God,  Christ  was  a  par- 
ticipant, while  Lucifer  was  not  permitted  thus  to  enter  into 
the  divine  purposes.  "Why,"  questioned  this  mighty  angel, 
"should  Christ  have  the  supremacy?  Why  is  he  thus  hon- 
ored above  Lucifer?" 

Leaving  his  place  in  the  immediate  presence  of  God, 
Lucifer  went  forth  to  diffuse  the  spirit  of  discontent  among 
the  angels.  Working  witli  mysterious  secrecy,  and  for  a 
time  concealing  his  real  purpose  under  an  appearance  of 
reverence  for  God,  he  endeavored  to  excite  dissatisfaction 
concerning  the  laws  that  governed  heavenly  beings,  inti- 
mating that  they  imposed  an  unnecessary  restraint.  Since 
their  natures  were  holy,  he  urged  that  the  angels  should 
obey  the  dictates  of  their  own  will.  He  sought  to  create 
sympathy  for  himself,  by  representing  that  God  had  dealt 
unjustly  with  him  in  bestowing  supreme  honor  upon  Christ. 
He  claimed  that  in  aspiring  to  greater  power  and  honor  he 
was  not  aiming  at  self-exaltation,  but  was  seeking  to  secure 
liberty  for  all  the  inhabitants  of  Heaven,  that  by  this  means 
they  might  attain  to  a  higher  state  of  existence. 

God,  in  his  great  mercy,  bore  long  with  Lucifer.  He  was 
not  immediately  degraded  from  his  exalted  station  when  he 
first  indulged  the  spirit  of  discontent,  nor  even  when  he  be- 
gan to  present  his  false  claims  before  the  loyal  angels.  Long 
was  he  retained  in  Heaven.  Again  and  again  he  was  offered 


496  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

pardon,  on  condition  of  repentance  and  submission.  Such 
efforts  as  only  infinite  love  and  wisdom  could  devise,  were 
made  to  convince  him  of  his  error.  The  spirit  of  discontent 
had  never  before  been  known  in  Heaven.  Lucifer  himself 
did  not  at  first  see  whither  he  was  drifting;  he  did  not  un- 
derstand the  real  nature  of  his  feelings.  But  as  his  dis- 
satisfaction was  proved  to  be  without  cause,  Lucifer  was 
convinced  that  he  was  in  the  wrong,  that  the  divine  claims 
were  just,  and  that  he  ought  to  acknowledge  them  as  such 
before  all  Heaven.  Had  he  done  this,  he  might  have  saved 
himself  and  many  angels.  He  had  not  at  this  time  fully 
cast  off  his  allegiance  to  God.  Though  he  had  forsaken 
his  position  as  covering  cherub,  yet  if  he  had  been  willing 
to  return  to  God,  acknowledging  the  Creator's  wisdom,  and 
satisfied  to  fill  the  place  appointed  him  in  God's  great  plan, 
he  would  have  been  re-instated  in  his  office.  But  pride 
forbade  him  to  submit.  He  persistently  defended  his  own 
course,  maintained  that  he  had  no  need  of  repentance,  and 
fully  committed  himself,  in  the  great  controversy,  against 
his  Maker. 

All  the  powers,  of  his  master-mind  were  now  bent  to  the 
work  of  deception,  to  secure  the  sympathy  of  the  angels  that 
had  been  under  his  command.  Even  the  fact  that  Christ  had 
warned  and  counseled  him,  was  perverted  to  serve  his  trai- 
torous designs.  To  those  whose  loving  trust  bound  therrf 
most  closely  to  him,  Satan  had  represented  that  he  WMS 
wrongly  judged,  that  his  position  was  not  respected,  and  that 
his  liberty  was  to  be  abridged.  From  misrepresentation  of 
the  words  of  Christ,  he  passed  to  prevarication  and  direct  false- 
hood, accusing  the  Son  of  God  of  a  design  to  humiliate  him 
before  the  inhabitants  of  Heaven.  He  sought  also  to  make 
a  false  issue  between  himself  and  the  loyal  angels.  All 
whom  he  could  not  subvert  and  bring  fully  to  his  side,  he 
accused  of  indifference  to  the  interests  of  heavenly  brings. 
The  very  work  which  he  himself  \\ns  doing,  he  charged 
upon  those  who  remained  true  to  God.  And  to  sustain  his 


TUK  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL.  497 


charge  of  God's  injustice  toward  him,  he  resorted  to  misrep- 
resentation of  the  words  and  acts  of  the  Creator.  It  was  his 
policy  to  perplex  the  angels  with  subtle  arguments  concern- 
ing the  purposes  of  God.  Eve^thing  that  was  simple  he 
shrouded  in  mystery,  and  by  artful  perversion  cast  doubt 
upon  the  plainest  statements  of  Jehovah.  His  high  position, 
in  such  close  connection  with  the  divine  administration,  gave 
greater  force  to  his  representations,  and  many  were  induced 
to  unite  with  him  in  rebellion  against  Heaven's  authority. 

God  in  his  wisdom  permitted  Satan  to  carry  forward  his 
work,  until  the  spirit  of  disaffection  ripened  into  active  revolt. 
It  was  necessary  for  his  plans  to  be  fully  developed,  that 
their  true  nature  and  tendency  might  be  seen  by  all.  Lucifer, 
as  the  anointed  cherub,  had  been  highly  exalted;  he  was 
greatly  kr,  ed  by  the  heavenly  beings,  and  his  influence  over 
them  was  strong.  God's  government  included  not  only  the 
inhabitants  of  Heaven,  but  of  all  the  worlds  that  he  had 
created;  and  Satan  thought  that  if  he  could  carry  the  angels 
of  Heaven  with  him  in  rebellion,  he  could  carry  also  the 
other  worlds.  He  had  artfully  presented  his  side  of  llie 
question,  employing  sophistry  and  fraud  to  secure  his  objects. 
His  power  to  deceive  was  very  great,  and  by  disguising  him- 
self in  a  cloak  of  falsehood  he  had  gained  an  advantage. 
Even  the  loyal  angels  could  not  fully  discern  his  character, 
or  see  to  what  his  work  was  leading. 

Satan  had  been  so  highly  honored,  and  all  his  acts  were 
so  clothed  with  mystery,  that  it  was  difficult  to  disclose  to 
the  angels  the  true  nature  of  his  work.  Until  fully  devel- 
oped, sin  would  not  appear  the  evil  thing  it  was.  Hereto- 
fore it  had  had  no  place  in  the  universe  of  God,  and  holy 
beings  had  no  conception  of  its  nature  and  malignity.  They 
could  not  discern  the  terrible  consequences  that  would  result 
from  setting  aside  the  divine  law.  Satan  had,  at  first,  con- 
cealed his  work  under  a  specious  profession  of  loyalty  to 
God.  He  claimed  to  be  seeking  to  promote  the  honor  of 
God,  the  stability  of  his  government,  and  the  £ood  of  all  the 


498  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


inhabitants  of  Heaven.  While  instilling  discontent  into  the 
minds  of  the  angels  under  him,  he  had  artfully  made  it 
appear  that  he  was  seeking  to  remove  dissatisfaction.  When 
he  urged  that  changes  be  made  in  the  order  and  laws  of 
God's  government,  it  was  under  the  pretense  that  these  were 
necessary  in  order  to  preserve  harmony  in  Heaven. 

In  his  dealing  with  sin,  God  could  employ  only  righteous- 
ness and  truth.  Satan  could  use  what  God  could  not— 
flattery  and  deceit.  He  had  sought  to  falsify  the  word  of 
God,  and  had  misrepresented  his  plan  of  government  before 
the  angels,  claiming  that  God  was  not  just  in  laying  laws 
and  rules  upon  the  inhabitants  of  Heaven;  that  in  requiring 
submission  and 'obedience  from  his  creatures,  he  was  seeking 
merely  the  exaltation  of  himself.  Therefore  it  must  be  dem- 
onstrated before  the -inhabitants  of  Heaven  as  well  as  of  all 
the  worlds,  that  God's  government  was  just,  his  law  perfect. 
Satan  had  made  it  appear  that  he  himself  was  seeking  to 
promote  the  good  of  the  universe.  The  true  character  of 
the  usurper,  and  his  real  object,  must  be  understood  by  all. 
He  must  have  time  to  manifest  himself  by  his  wicked  works. 

The  discord  which  his  own  course  had  caused  in  Heaven, 
Satan  charged  upon  the  law  and  government  of  God.  All 
evil  he  declared  to  be  the  result  of  the  divine  administration. 
He  claimed  that  it  was  his  own  object  to  improve  upon  the 
statutes  of  Jehovah.  Therefore  it  was  necessary  that  he 
should  demonstrate  the  nature  of  his  claims,  and  show  the 
working  out  of  his  proposed  changes  in  the  divine  law.  His 
own  work  must  condemn  him.  Satan  had  claimed  from 
the  first  that  he  was  not  in  rebellion.  The  whole  universe 
must  see  the  deceiver  unmasked. 

Even  when  it  was  decided  that  he  could  no  longer  remain 
in  Heaven,  infinite  wisdom  did  not  destroy  Satan.  Since 
the  service  of  love  can  alone  be  acceptable  to  God,  the  alle- 
giance of  his  creatures  must  rest  upon  a  conviction  of  his 
justice  ami  benevolence.  The  inhabitants  of  Heaven  and 
of  other  worlds,  being  unprepared  to  comprehend  the  nature 


WE  ORIGJN  OF  AT//,.  499 


or  consequences  of  sin,  could  not  then  have  seen  the  justice 
and  mercy  of  God  in  the  destruction  of  Satan.  Had  he  been 
immediately  blotted  from  existence,  they  would  have  served 
God  from  fear,  rather  than  from  love.  The  influence  of  the 
deceiver  would  not  have  been  fully  destroyed,  nor  would  the 
spirit  of  rebellion  have  been  utterly  eradicated.  Evil  must 
be  permitted  to  come  to  maturity.  For  the  good  of  the 
entire  universe  through  ceaseless  ages,  Satan  must  more 
fully  develop  his  principles,  that  his  charges  against  the 
divine  government  might  be  seen  in  their  true  light  by  all 
created  beings,  that  the  justice  and  mercy  of  God  and  the 
immutability  of  his  law  might  forever  be  placed  beyond  all 
question. 

Satan's  rebellion  was  to  be  a  lesson  to  the  universe  through 
all  coming  ages,  a  perpetual  testimony  to  the  nature  and 
terrible  results  of  sin.  The  working  out  of 'Satan's  rule, 
its  effects  upon  both  men  and  angels,  would  show  what  must 
be  the  fruit  of  setting  aside  the  divine  authority.  It  would 
testify  that  with  the  existence  of  God's  government  and  his 
law  is  bound  up  the  well-being  of  all  the  creatures  he  has 
made.  Thus  the  history  of  this  terrible  experiment  of  re- 
bellion was  to  be  a  perpetual  safeguard  to  all  holy  intelli- 
gences, to  prevent  them  from  being  deceived  as  to  the  nature 
of  transgression,  to  save  them  from  committing  sin,  and  suf- 
fering its  punishment. 

To  the  very  close  of  the  controversy  in  Heaven,  the  great 
usurper  continued  to  justify  himself.  When  it  was  an- 
nounced that  with  all  his  sympathizers  he  must  be  expelled 
from  the  abodes  of  bliss,  then  the  rebel  leader  boldly  avowed 
his  contempt  for  the  Creator's  law.  He  reiterated  his  claim 
that  angels  needed  no  control,  but  should  be  left  to  follow 
their  own  will,  which  would  ever  guide  them  right.  He 
denounced  the  divine  statutes  as  a  restriction  of  their  liberty, 
and  declared  that  it  was  his  purpose  to  secure  the  abolition 
of  law;  that,  freed  from  this  restraint,  the  hosts  of  Heaven 
might  enter  upon  a  more  exalted,  more  glorious  state  of 
existence. 


500  THE  GREA  T  (  Y>  A  TK  O  \  'KRXY. 

With  one  accord,  Satan  and  his  host  threw  the  blame  of 
their  rebellion  wholly  upon  Christ,  declaring  that  if  they 
had  not  been  reproved,  they  would  never  have  rebelled. 
Thus  stubborn  and  defiant  in  their  disloyalty,  seeking  vainly 
to  overthrow  the  government  of  God,  yet  blasphemously 
claiming  to  be  themselves  the  innocent  victims  of  oppressive 
power,  the  arch-rebel  and  all  his  sympathizers  were  at  last 
banished  from  Heaven. 

/The  same  spirit  that  prompted  rebellion  in  Heaven,  still 
inspires  rebellion  on  earth.  Satan  has  continued  with  men 
the  same  policy  which  he  pursued  with  the  angels.  His 
spirit  now  reigns  in  the  children  of  disobedience.  Like  him 
they  seek  to  break  down  the  restraints  of  the  law  of  God, 
and  promise  men  liberty  through  transgression  of  its  pre- 
cepts. Reproof  of  sin  still  arouses  the  spirit  of  hatred  and 
resistance.  When  God's  messages  of  warning  are  brought 
home  to  the  conscience,  Satan  leads  men  to  justify  them- 
selves, and  to  seek  the  sympathy  of  others  in  their  course 
of  sin.  Instead  of  correcting  their  errors,  they  excite  indig- 
nation against  the  reprover,  as  if  he  were  the  sole  cause  of 
difficulty.  From  the  days  of  righteous  Abel  to  our  own 
time,  such  is  the  spirit  which  has  been  displayed  toward 
those  who  d'.ire  to  condemn  sin. 

By  the  same  misrepresentation  of  the  character  of  God  as 
he  had  practiced  in  Heaven,  causing  him  to  be  regarded  as 
severe  and  tyrannical,  Satan  induced  man  to  sin.  And 
having  succeeded  thus  far,  he  declared  that  God's  unjust 
restrictions  had  led  to  man's  fall,  as  they  had  led  to  his  own 
rebellion. 

But  the  Eternal  One  himself  proclaims  his  character: 
"The  Lord  God,  merciful  and  gracious,  long-suilrring,  and 
abundant  in  goodness  and  truth,  keeping  mercy  for  thou- 
sands, forgiving  iniquity  and  transgression  and  sin,  and 
that  will  by  no  menus  clear  the  guilty."  * 

In  the  banishment  of  Satan  from  Heaven,  God  declared 
his  justice,  and  maintained  the  honor  of  his  throne.  But 

JKx.  34:6,  7. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL.  501 


when  man  had  sinned  through  yielding  to  the  deceptions 
of  trjis  apostate  spirit,  God  gave  an  evidence  of  his  love  by 
yielding  up  his  only  begotten  Son  to  die  for  the  fallen  race. 
In  the  atonement  .the  character  of  God  is  revealed.  The 
mighty  argument  of  the  cross  demonstrates  to  the  whole 
universe  that  the  course  of  sin  which  Lucifer  had  chosen 
was  in  nowise  chargeable  upon  the  government  of  God. 

In  the  contest  between  Christ  and  Satan,  during  the  Sav- 
iour's earthly  ministry,  the  character  of  the  great  deceiver 
was  unmasked.  Nothing  could  so  effectually  have  uprooted 
Satan  from  the  affections  of  the  heavenly  angels  and  the 
whole  loyal  universe  as  did  his  cruel  warfare  upon  the 
world's  Redeemer.  The  daring  blasphemy  of  his  demand 
that  Christ  should  pay  him  homage,  his  presumptuous  bold- 
ness in  bearing  him  to  the  mountain  summit  and  the  pin- 
nacle of  the  temple,  the  malicious  intent  betrayed  in  urging 
him  to  cast  himself  down  from  the  dizzy  height,  the  un- 
sleeping malice  that  hunted  him  from  place  to  place,  inspir- 
ing the  hearts  of  priests  and  people  to  reject  his  love,  and  at 
the  last  to  cry,  "  Crucify  him  !  crucify  him ! " — all  this  excited 
the  amazement  and  indignation  of  the  universe. 

It  was  Satan  that  prompted  the  world's  rejection  of  Christ. 
The  prince  of  evil  exerted  all  his  power  and  cunning  to 
destroy  Jesus;  for  he  saw  that  the  Saviour's  mercy  and  love, 
his  compassion  and  pitying  tenderness,  were  representing 
to  the  world  the  character  of  God.  Satan  contested  every 
claim  put  forth  by  the  Son  of  God,  and  employed  men  as 
his  agents  to  fill  the  Saviour's  life  with  suffering  and  sorrow. 
The  sophistry  and  falsehood  by  which  he  had  sought  to 
hinder  the  work  of  Jesus,  the  hatred  manifested  through  the 
children  of  disobedience,  his  cruel  accusations  against  Him 
whose  life  was  one  of  unexampled  goodness,  all  sprung  from 
deep-seated  revenge.  The  pent-up  fires  of  envy  and  malice, 
hatred  and  revenge,  burst  forth  on  Calvary  against  the  Son 
of  God,  while  all  Heaven  gazed  upon  the  scene  in  silent 
horror. 


502  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


When  the  great  sacrifice  had  been  consummated,  Christ 
ascended  on  high,  refusing  the  adoration  of  angels  until  he 
had  presented  the  request,  "I  will  that  they  also,  whom 
thou  hast  given  me,  be  with  me  where  I  am."1  Then  with 
inexpressible  love  and  power  came  forth  the  answer  from 
the  Father's  throne,  "  Let  all  the  angels  of  God  worship 
him."2  Not  a  stain  rested  upon  Jesus.  His  humiliation 
ended,  his  sacrifice  completed,  there  was  given  unto  him  a 
name  that  is  above  every  name. 

Now  the  guilt  of  Satan  stood  forth  without  excuse.  He 
had  revealed  his  true  character  as  a  liar  and  a  murderer. 
It  was  seen  that  the  very  same  spirit  with  which  he  ruled 
the  children  of  men,  who  were  under  his  power,  he  would 
have  manifested  had  he  been  permitted  to  control  the  in- 
habitants of  Heaven.  He  had  claimed  that  the  transgression 
of  God's  law  would  bring  liberty  and  exaltation ;  but  it  was 
seen  to  result  in  bondage  and  degradation. 

Satan's  lying  charges  against  the  divine  character  and 
government  appeared  in  their  true  light.  lie  had  accused 
God  of  seeking  merely  the  exaltation  of  himself  in  requiring 
submission  and  obedience  from  his  creatures,  and  had  de- 
clared that  while  the  Creator  exacted  self-denial  from  all 
others,  he  himself  practiced  no  self-denial,  and  made  no 
sacrifice.  Now  it  was  seen  that  for  the  salvation  of  a  fallen 
and  sinful  race,  the  Ruler  of  the  universe  had  made  the 
greatest  sacrifice  which  love  could  make;  for  "  God  was  in 
Christ,  reconciling  the  world  unto  himself."3  It  was  seen, 
also,  that  while  Lucifer  had  opened  the  door  for  the  entrance 
of  sin,  by  his  desire  for  honor  and  supremacy,  Christ  had. 
in  order  to  destroy  sin,  humbled  himself,  and  become  obe- 
dient unto  death. 

God  had   manifested   his  abhorrence  of  the  principles  of 

rebellion.     All  Heaven  saw  his  justice  revealed,  both  in  the 

condemnation   of  Satan    and    in    the   redemption    of   man. 

Lucifer  had  declared  that  if  the  law  of  God  was  changeless, 

*  John  17  : 24.  aHeb.  1:6.  *  2  Cor.  5  : 19. 


THE  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL.  503 

and  its  penalty  could  not  be  remitted,  every  transgressor 
must  be  forever  debarred  from  the  Creator's  favor.  He  had 
claimed  that  the  sinful  race  were  placed  beyond  redemption, 
and  were  therefore  his  rightful  prey.  But  the  death  of 
Christ  was  an  argument  in  man's  behalf  that  could  not  be 
overthrown.  The  penalty  of  the  law  fell  upon  him  who 
was  equal  with  God,  and  man  was  free  to  accept  the  right- 
eousness of  Christ,  and  by  a  life  of  penitence  and  humiliation 
to  triumph,  as  the  Son  of  God  had  triumphed,  over  the 
power  of  Satan.  Thus  God  is  just,  and  yet  the  justifier  of 
all  who  believe  in  Jesus. 

But  it  was  not  merely  to  accomplish  the  redemption  of 
man  that  Christ  came  to  the  earth  to  suffer  and  to  die.  He 
came  to  "magnify  the  law"  and  to  "make  it  honorable." 
Not  alone  that  the  inhabitants  of  this  world  might  regard 
the  law  as  it  should  be  regarded;  but  it  was  to  demonstrate 
to  all  the  worlds  of  the  universe  that  God's  law  is  unchange- 
able. Could  its  claims  have  been  set  aside,  then  the  Son  of 
God  need  not  have  yielded  up  his  life  to  atone  for  its  trans- 
gression. The  death  of  Christ  proves  it  immutable.  And 
the  sacrifice  to  which  infinite  love  impelled  the  Father  and 
the  Son,  that  sinners  might  be  redeemed,  demonstrates  to 
all  the  universe — what  nothing  less  than  this  plan  of  atone- 
ment could  have  sufficed  to  do — that  justice  and  mercy  are 
the  foundation  of  the  law  and  government  of  God. 

In  the  final  execution  of  the  Judgment  it  will  be  seen  that 
no  cause  for  sin  exists.  When  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth 
shall  demand  of  Satan,  "Why  hast  thou  rebelled  against 
me,  and  robbed  me  of  the  subjects  of  my  kingdom?"  the 
originator  of  evil  can  render  no  excuse.  Every  mouth  will 
be  stopped,  and  all  the  hosts  of  rebellion  will  be  speechless. 

The  cross  of  Calvary,  while  it  declares  the  law  immutable, 
proclaims  to  the  universe  that  the  wages  of  sin  is  death.  In 
the  Saviour's  expiring  cry,  "  It  is  finished,"  the  death-knell 
of  Satan  was  rung.  The  great  controversy  which  had  been 
so  long  in  progress  was  then  decided,  and  the  final  eradi- 


504  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


cation  of  evil  was  made  certain.  The  Son  of  God  passed 
through  the  portals  of  the  tomb,  that  "through  death  ho 
might  destroy  him  that  had  the  power  of  death,  that  is,  the 
devil." 1  Lucifer's  desire  for  self-exaltation  had  led  him  to  say, 
"  I  will  exalt  my  throne  above  the  stars  of  God.  ...  I 
will  be  like  the  Most  High."  God  declares,  "  I  will  bring 
thee  to  ashes  upon  the  earth,  .  .  .  and  never  shalt  thou 
be  any  more." 2  When  "  the  day  cometh  that  shall  burn  as 
an  oven,"  "  all  the  proud,  yea,  and  all  that  do  wickedly,  shall 
be  stubble;  and  the  day  that  cometh  shall  burn  them  up, 
saith  the  Lord  of  hosts,  that  it  shall  leave  them  neither  root 
nor  branch."3 

The  whole  universe  will  have  become  witnesses  to  the 
nature  and  results  of  sin.  And  its  utter  extermination, 
which  in  the  beginning  would  have  brought  fear  to  angels 
and  dishonor  to  God,  will  now  vindicate  his  love  and  es- 
tablish his  honor  before  a  universe  of  beings  who  delight 
to  do  his  will,  and  in  whose  heart  is  his  law.  Never  will 
evil  again  be  manifest.  Says  the  Word  of  God,  "Affliction 
shall. not  rise  up  the  second  time."4  The  law  of  God,  which 
Satan  has  reproached  as  the  yoke  of  bondage,  will  be  hon- 
ored as  the  law  of  liberty.  A  tested  and  proved  creation 
will  never  again  be  turned  from  allegiance  to  Him  whose 
character  has  been  fully  manifested  before  them  as  fathom- 
less love  and  infinite  wisdom. 

i  Heb.  2:14.  2  Isa.  14  :  13,  14;  Eze.  28  :  18,  19. 

8  Mai.  4.1.  *Nah.  1  :  9. 


CHAPTER    XXX. 


ENMITY  BETWEEN   MAN   AND   SATAN. 

"I  WILL  put  enmity  between  thee  and  the  woman,  and 
between  thy  seed  and  her  seed;  it  shall  bruise  thy  head, 
and  thou  shalt  bruise  his  heel." 1  The  divine  sentence  pro- 
nounced against  Satan  after  the  fall  of  man,  was  also  a 
prophecy,  embracing  all  the  ages  to  the  close  of  time,  and 
foreshadowing  the  great  conflict  to  engage  all  the  races  of 
men  who  should  live  upon  the  earth. 

God  declares,  "I  will  put  enmity."  This  enmity  is  not 
naturally  entertained.  When  man  transgressed  the  divine 
law,  his  nature  became  evil,  and  he  was  in  harmony,  and 
not  at  variance,  with  Satan.  -There  exists  naturally  no 
enmity  between  sinful  man  and  the  originator  of  sin.  Both 
became  evil  through  apostasy.  The  apostate  is  never  at 
rest,  except  as  he  obtains  sympathy  and  support  by  inducing 
others  to  follow  his  example.  For  this  reason,  fallen  angels 
and  wicked  men  unite  in  desperate  companionship.  Had 
not  God  specially  interposed,  Satan  and  man  would  have 
entered  into  an  alliance  against  Heaven;  and  instead  of 
cherishing  enmity  against  Satan,  the  whole  human  family 
would  have  been  united  in  opposition  to  God. 

Satan  tempted  man  to  sin,  as  he  had  caused  angels  to 
rebel,  that  he  might  thus  secure  co-operation  in  his  warfare 
against  Heaven.  There  was  no  dissension  between  himself 
and  the  fallen  angels  as  regards  their  hatred  of -Christ;  while 
on  all  other  points  there  was  discord,  they  were  firmly  united 
in  opposing  the  authority  of  the  Ruler  of  the  universe.  But 
when  Satan  heard  the  declaration  that  enmity  should  exist 

3:15. 

(505) 


506  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


between  himself  and  the  woman,  and  between  his  seed  and 
her  seed,  lie  knew  that  his  efforts  to  deprave  human  nature 
would  be  interrupted;  that  by  some  means  man  was  to  be 
enabled  to  resist  his  power. 

Satan's  enmity  against  the  human  race  is  kindled,  because, 
through  Christ,  they  are  the  objects  of  God's  love  and  mercy. 
lie  desires  to  thwart  the  divine  plan  for  man's  redemption, 
to  cast  dishonor  upon  God,  by  defacing  and  defiling  his 
handiwork;  he  would  cause  grief  in  Heaven,  and  rill  the 
earth  with  woe  and  desolation.  And  he  points  to  all  this 
evil  as  the  result  of  God's  work  in  creating  man. 

It  is  the  grace  that  Christ  implants  in  the  soul  which 
creates  in  man  enmity  against  Satan.  Without  this  con- 
verting grace  and  renewing  power,  man  would  continue  the 
captive  of  Satan,  a  servant  ever  ready  to  do  his  bidding. 
But  the  new  principle  in  the  soul  creates  conflict  where 
hitherto  had  been  peace.  The  power  which  Christ  impart.-, 
enables  man  to  resist  the  tyrant  and  usurper.  Whoever  is 
seen  to  abhor  pin  instead  of  loving  it,  whoever  resists  and 
conquers  those  passions  that  have  held  sway  within,  displays 
the  operation  of  a  principle  wholly  from  above. 

The  antagonism  that  exists  between  the  spirit  of  Christ 
and  the  spirit  of  Satan  was  most  strikingly  displayed  in  the 
world's- reception  of  Jesus.  It  was  not  so  much  because  he 
appeared  without  worldly  wealth,  pomp,  or  grandeur,  that 
the  Jews  were  led  to  reject  him.  They  saw  that  he  possessed 
power  which  would  more  than  compensate  for  the  lack  of 
these  outward  advantages.  But  the  purity  and  holiness  of 
Christ  called  forth  against  him  the  hatred  of  the  ungodly. 
His  life  of  self-denial  and  sinless  devotion  was  a  perpetual 
reproof  to  a  proud,  sensual  people.  It  was  this  that  evoked 
enmity  against  the  Son  of  <  Jod.  Satan  and  evil  angels  joined 
with  evil  men.  All  the  energies  of  apostasy  conspired  against 
the  champion  of  truth. 

The  same  enmity  is  manifested  toward  Christ's  followers 
as  was  manifested  toward  their  Master.  Whoever  sees  the 


ENMITY  BETWEEN  MAN  AND  SA  TAN,  507 


repulsive  character  of  sin,  and,  in  strength  from  above,  re- 
sists temptation,  will  assuredly  arouse  the  wrath  of  Satan 
and  his  subjects.  Hatred  of  the  pure  principles  of  truth, 
and  reproach  and  persecution  of  its  advocates,  will  exist  as 
long  as  sin  and  sinners  remain.  The  followers  of  Christ 
and  the  servants  of  Satan  cannot  harmonize.  The  offense 
of  the  cross  has  not  ceased.  "All  that  will  live  godly  in 
Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution." ! 

Satan's  agents  are  constantly  working  under  his  direction 
to  establish  his  authority  and  build  up  his  kingdom  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  government  of  God.  To  this  end  they  seek  to 
deceive  Christ's  followers,  and  -allure  them  from  their  alle- 
giance. Like  their  leader,  they  misconstrue  and  pervert 
the  Scriptures  to  accomplish  their  object.  As  Satan  en- 
deavored to  cast  reproach  upon  God,  so  do  his  agents  seek 
to  malign  God's  people.  The  spirit  which  put  Christ  to 
death  moves  the  wicked  to  destroy  his  followers.  All  this 
is  foreshadowed  in  that  first  prophecy,  "*I  will  put  enmity 
between  thee  and  the  woman,  and  between  thy  seed  and  her 
seed."  And  this  will  continue  to  the  close  of  time. 

Satan  summons  all  his  forces,  and  throws  his  whole  power 
into  the  combat.  Why  is  it  that  he  meets  with  no  greater 
resistance?  Why  are  the  soldiers  of  Christ  so  sleepy  ami 
indifferent? — Because  they  have  so  little  real  connection 
with  Christ;  because  they  are  so  destitute  of  his  Spirit.  Sin 
is  not  to  them  repulsive  and  abhorrent,  as  it  was  to  their 
Master.  They  do  not  meet  it,  as  did  Christ,  with  decisive 
and  determined  resistance.  They  do  not  realize  the  exceed- 
ing evil  and  malignity  of  sin,  and  they  are  blinded  both  to 
the  character  and  the  power  of  the  prince  of  darkness. 
There  is  little  enmity  against  Satan  and  his  works,  because 
there  is  so  great  ignorance  concerning  his  power  and  malice, 
and  the  vast  extent  of  his  warfare  against  Christ  and  his 
church.  Multitudes  are  deluded  here.  They  do  not  know 
that  their  enemy  is  a  mighty  general,  who  controls  the 
minds  of  evil  angels,  and  that  with  well-matured  plans  and 

1 2  Tim.  3:12. 


508  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


skillful  movements  he  is  warring  against  Christ  to  prevent 
the  salvation  of  souls.  Among  professed  Christians,  and 
even  among  ministers  of  the  gospel,  there  is  heard  scarcely 
a  reference  to  Satan,  except  perhaps  an  incidental  mention 
in  the  pulpit.  They  overlook  the  evidences  of  his  continual 
activity  and  success;  they  neglect  the  many  warnings  of  his 
subtlety;  they  seem  to  ignore  his  very  existence. 

While  men  are  ignorant  of  his  devices,  this  vigilant  foe 
is  upon  their  track  every  moment.  He  is  intruding  his 
presence  in  every  department  of  the  household,  in  every 
street  of  our  cities,  in  the  churches,  in  the  national  councils, 
in  the  courts  of  justice,  perplexing,  deceiving,  seducing, 
everywhere  ruining  the  souls  and  bodies  of  men,- women, 
and  children,  breaking  up  families,  sowing  hatred,  emula- 
tion, strife,  sedition,  murder.  And  the  Christian  world  seem 
to  regard  these  things  as  though  God  had  appointed  them, 
and  they  must  exist. 

Satan  is  continually  seeking  to  overcome  the  people  of 
God  by  breaking  down  the  barriers  which  separate  them 
from  the  world.  Ancient  Israel  were  enticed  into  sin  when 
they  ventured  into  forbidden  association  with  the  heathen. 
In  a  similar  manner  are  modern  Israel  led  astray.  "  The 
god  of  this  world  hath  blinded  the  minds  of  them  which 
believe  not,  lest  the  light  of  the  glorious  gospel  of  Christ, 
who  is  the  image  of  God,  should  shine  unto  them."1  All 
who  are  not  decided  followers  of  Christ  are  servants  of  Satan. 
In  the  unregenerate  heart  there  is  love  of  sin,  and  a  dis- 
position to  cherish  and  excuse  it.  In  the  renewed  heart 
there  is  hatred  of  sin,  and  determined  resistance  against  it. 
When  Christians  choose  the  society  of  the  ungodly  and 
unbelieving,  they  expose  themselves  to  temptation.  Sal  an 
conceals  himself  from  view,  and  stealthily  draws  his  decep- 
tive covering  over  their  eyes.  They  cannot  see  that  such 
company  is  calculated  to  <!<>  them  harm;  and  while  all  the 
lime  assimilating  to  the  world  in  character,  words,  and 
actions,  they  are  becoming  more  and  more  blinded. 

12Cor.  4  :4. 


ENMITY  BETWEEN  MAN  AND  SA  TAN.  509 

Conformity  to  worldly  customs  converts  the  church  to  the 
world;  it  never  converts  the  world  to  Christ.  Familiarity 
with  sin  will  inevitably  cause  it  to  appear  less  repulsive- 
He  who  chooses  to  associate  writh  the  servants  of  Satan, 
will  soon  cease  to  fear  their  master.  When  in  the  way  of 
duty  we  are  brought  into  trial,  as  was  Daniel  in  the  king's 
court,  we  may  be  sure  that  God  will  protect  us;  but  if  we 
place  ourselves  under  temptation,  we  shall  fall  sooner  or 
later. 

The  tempter  often  works  most  successfully  through  those 
who  are  least  suspected  of  being  under  his  control.  The 
possessors  of  talent  and  education  are  admired  and  honored, 
as  if  these  qualities  could  atone  for  the  absence  of  the  fear 
of  God,  or  entitle  men  to  his  favor.  -  Talent  and  culture, 
considered  in  themselves,  are  gifts  of  God;  but  when  these 
are  made  to  supply  the  place  of  piety,  when,  instead  of  bring- 
ing the  soul  nearer  to  God,  they  lead  away  from  him,  then 
they  become  a  curse  and  a  snare.  The  opinion  prevails 
with  many  that  all  which  appears  like  courtesy  or  re- 
finement must,  in  some  sense,  pertain  to  Christ.  Never 
was  there  a  greater  mistake.  These  qualities  should  grace 
the  character  of  every  Christian,  for  they  would  exert  a 
powerful  influence  in  favor  of  true  religion;  but  they  must 
be  consecrated  to  God,  or  they  also  are  a  power  for  evil. 
Many  a  man  of  cultured  intellect  and  pleasant  manners  who 
would  not  stoop  to  what  is  commonly  regarded  as  an  im- 
moral act,  is  but  a  polished  instrument  in  the  hands  of  Satan. 
The  insidious,  deceptive  character  of  his  influence  and  ex- 
ample renders  him  a  more  dangerous  enemy  to  the  cause  of 
Christ  than  are  those  who  are  ignorant  and  uncultured. 

By  earnest  prayer  and  dependence  upon  God,  Solomon 
obtained  the  wisdom  which  excited  the  wonder  and  ad- 
miration of  the  world.  But  when  he  turned  from  the 
Source  of  his  strength,  and  went  forward  relying  upon  him- 
self, he  fell  a  prey  to  temptation.  Then  the  marvelous 
powers  bestowed  on  this  wisest  of  kings,  only  rendered  him 
a  more  effective  agent  of  the  adversary  of  souls. 


510  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


While  Satan  is  constantly  seeking  to  blind  their  minds 
to  the  fact,  let  Christians  never  forget  that  they  "  wrestle  not 
against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against  principalities,  against 
powers,  against  the  rulers  of  the  darkness  of  this  world, 
against  wricked  spirits  in  high  places." l  The  inspired  warn- 
ing is  sounding  down  the  centuries  to  our  time:  "  Be  sober, 
be  vigilant;  because  your  adversary  the  devil,  as  a  roaring 
lion,  walketh  about,  seeking  whom  he  may  devour."2  "Put 
on  the  whole  armor  of  God,  that  ye  may  be  able  to  stand 
against  the  wiles  of  the  devil.*' 3 

From  the  days  of  Adam  to  our  own  time,  our  great  enemy 
has  been  exercising  his  power  to  oppress  and  destroy.  He 
is  now  preparing  for  his  last  campaign  against  the  church. 
All  who  seek  to  follow  Jesus  will  be  brought  into  conflict 
with  this  relentless  foe.  The  more  nearly  the  Christian 
imitates  the  divine  Pattern,  the  more  surely  will  he  make 
himself  a  mark  for  the  attacks  of  Satan.  All  who  are  ac- 
tively engaged  in.  the  cause  of  God,  seeking  to  unveil  tlio 
deceptions  of  the  evil  one  and  to  present  Christ  before  the 
people,  will  be  able  to  join  in  the  testimony  of  Paul,  in 
which  lie  speaks  of  serving  the  Lord  with  all  humility  of 
mind,  with  many  tears  and  temptations. 

Satan  assailed  Christ  with  his  fiercest  and  most  subtle 
temptations;  but  he  was  repulsed  in  every  conflict.  Those 
battles  were  fought  in  our  behalf;  those  victories  make  it 
possible  for  us  to  conquer.  Christ  will  give  strength  to  all 
who  seek  it.  No  man  without  his  own  consent  can  be  ov»«r- 
conie  by  Satan.  The  tempter  has  no  power  to  control  the 
will  or  to  force  the  soul  to  sin.  He  may  distress,  but  he 
cannot  contaminate.  He  can  cause  agony,  but  not  defile- 
ment. The  fact  that  Christ  has  conquered  should  inspire 
his  followers  with  courage  to  fight  manfully  the  battle 
against  sin  and  Satan. 

.  6  :  12  (margin).  2  1  Pet.  5:8.  3  Kph.  (5:11. 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 


AGENCY  OF  EVIL  SPIRITS. 

THE  connection  of  the  visible  with  the  invisible  world,  the 
ministration  of  angels  of  God,  and  the  agency  of  evil  spirits, 
are  plainly  revealed  in  the  Scriptures,  and  inseparably  in- 
terwoven with  human  history.  There  is  a  growing  tend- 
ency to  disbelief  in  the  existence  of  evil  spirits,  while  the 
holy  angels  that  "  minister  for  them  who  shall  be  heirs  of 
salvation," l  are  regarded  by  many  as  the  spirits  of  the  dead. 
But  the  Scriptures  not  only  teach  the  existence  of  angels, 
both  good  and  evil,  but  present  unquestionable  proof  that 
these  are  not  the  disembodied  spirits  of  dead  men. 

Before  the  creation  of  man,  angels  were  in  existence;  for 
when  the  foundations  of  the  earth  were  laid,  "  the  morning 
stars  sang  together,  and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy.'" 
After  the  fall  of  man,  angels  were  sent  to  guard  the  tree  of 
life,  and  this  before  a  human  being  had  died.  Angels  are 
in  nature  superior  to  men.  For  the  psalmist  says  that  man 
was  made  "  a  little  lower  than  the  angels." 3 

We  are  informed  in  Scripture  as  to  the  number,  and  the 
power  and  glory,  of  the  heavenly  beings,  of  their  connection 
with  the  government  of  God,  and  also  of  their  relation  to 
the  work  of  redemption.  "  The  Lord  hath  prepared  his 
throne  in  the  heavens;  and  his  kingdom  ruleth  over  all." 
And,  says  the  prophet,  "  I  heard  the  voice  of  many  angels 
round  about  the  throne."  In  the  presence-chamber  of  the 
King  of  kings  they  waitj — "  angels  that  excel  in  strength," 
"  ministers  of  his,  that  do  his  pleasure,"  "  hearkening  unto 
the  voice  of  his  word."  *  Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand 

i  Heb.  1 : 14.     2  Job  38  : 7.     3  Ps.  8  : 5.     *  Ps.  103  : 19-21 ;  Rev.  5:11. 
37  (511) 


512  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


and  thousands  of  thousands,  were  the  heavenly  messengers 
beheld  by  the  prophet  Daniel.  The  apostle  Paul  declared 
them  "  an  innumerable  company." 1  As  God's  messengers 
they  go  forth,  like  "  the  appearance  of  a  flash  of  lightning,"2 
so  dazzling  their  glory,  and  so  swift  their  flight.  The  angel 
that  appeared  at  the  Saviour's  tomb,  his  countenance  "  like 
lightning,  and  his  raiment  white  as  snow,"  caused  the  keepers 
for  fear  of  him  to  quake,  and  they  "became  as  dead  men."3 
When  Sennacherib,  the  haughty  Assyrian,  reproached  and 
blasphemed  God,  and  threatened  Israel  with  destruction, 
"  it  came  to  pass  that  night,  that  the  angel  of  the  Lord  went 
out,  and  smote  in  the  camp  of  the  Assyrians  an  hundred 
fourscore  and  five  thousand."  There  were  "  cut  off  all  the 
mighty  men  of  valor,  and  the  leaders  and  captains,"  from 
the  army  of  Sennacherib.  "  So  he  returned  with  shame  of 
face  to  his  own  land."  * 

Angels  are  sent  on  missions  of  mercy  to  the  children  of 
God.  To  Abraham,  with  promises  of  blessing;  to  the  gates 
of  Sodom,  to  rescue  righteous  Lot  from  its  fiery  doom;  to 
Elijah,  as  he  was  about  to  perish  from  weariness  and  hunger 
in  the  desert;  to  Elisha,  with  chariots  and  horses  of  fire 
surrounding  the  little  town  where  he  was  shut  in  by  his 
foes;  to  Daniel,  while  seeking  divine  wisdom  in  the  court 
of  a  heathen  king,  or  abandoned  to  become  the  lions'  prey; 
to  Peter,  doomed  to  death  in  Herod's  dungeon ;  to  the  pris- 
oners at  Philippi;  to  Paul  and  his  companions  in  the  night 
of  tempest  on  the  sea;  to  open  the  mind  of  Cornelius  to 
receive  the  gospel;  to  dispatch  Peter,  with  the  message  of 
salvation  to  the  Gentile  stranger, — thus  holy  angels  have,  in 
all  ages,  ministered  to  God's  people. 

A  guardian  angel  is  appointed  to  every  follower  of  Christ 
These  heavenly  watchers  shield  the  righteous  from  the  power 
of  the  wicked  one.  This  Satan  himself  recognized  when 
he  said,  "Doth  Job  fear  God  for  naught?  Hast  not  thou 

1  Dan.  7  : 10;  Heb.  12  :  22.  2  Eze.  1  : 14.          3  Matt.  28  : 3,  i. 

<2  Kings  19  :  35;  2  Chron.  32  :21. 


AGENCY  OF  EVIL  SPIRITS.  513 


made  a  hedge  about  him,  and  about  his  house,  and  about 
all  that  he  hath  on  every  side?"  The  agency  by  which 
God  protects  his  people  is  presented  in  the  words  of  the 
psalmist,  "The  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round  about 
them  that  fear  him,  and  delivereth  them." 2  Said  the  Sav- 
iour, speaking  of  those  that  believe  in  him,  "Take  heed 
that  ye  despise  not  one  of  these  little  ones;  for  I  say  unto 
you,  That  in  Heaven  their  angels  do  always  behold  the 
face  of  my  Father."5  The  angels  appointed  to  minister 
to  the  children  of  God  have  at  all  times  access  to  his 
presence. 

Thus  God's  people,  exposed  to  the  deceptive  power  and 
unsleeping  malice  of  the  prince  of  darkness,  and  in  conflict 
with  all  the  forces  of  evil,  are  assured  of  the  unceasing 
guardianship  of  heavenly  angels.  Nor  is  such  assurance 
given  without  need.  If  God  has  granted  to  his  children 
promise  of  grace  and  protection,  it  is  because  there  are 
mighty  agencies  of  evil  to  be  met, — agencies  numerous, 
determined,  and  untiring,  of  whose  malignity  and  power 
none  can  safely  be  ignorant  or  unheeding. 

Evil  spirits,  in  the  beginning  created  sinless,  were  equal 
in  nature,  power,  and  glory  with  the  holy  beings  that  are 
now  God's  messengers.  But  fallen  through  sin,  they  are 
leagued  together  for  the  dishonor  of  God  and  the  destruction 
of  men.  United  with  Satan  in  his  rebellion,  and  with  him 
cast  out  from  Heaven,  they  have,  through  all  succeeding 
ages,  co-operated  with  him  in  his  warfare  against  the  divine 
authority.  We  are  told  in  Scripture  of  their  confederacy 
and  government,  of  their  various  orders,  of  their  intelligence 
and  subtlety,  and  of  their  malicious  designs  against  the  peace 
and  happiness  of  men. 

Old-Testament  history  presents  occasional  mentions  of 
their  existence  and  agency ;  but  it  was  during  the  time  when 
Christ  was  upon  the  earth  that  evil  spirits  manifested  their 
power  in  the  most  striking  manner.  Christ  had  come  to 

1  Job  1:9,  10.  2 p8.  34:7.  3Matt.  1«-10 


514  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


enter  upon  the  plan  devised  for  man's  redemption,  and 
Satan  determined  to  assert  his  right  to  control  the  world. 
He  had  succeeded  in  establishing  idolatry  in  every  part  of 
the  earth  except  the  land  of  Palestine.  To  the  only  land 
that  had  not  fully  yielded  to  the  tempter's  sway,  Christ  came 
to  shed  upon  the  people  the  light  of  Heaven.  Here  two 
rival  powers  claimed  supremacy.  Jesus  was  stretching  out 
his  arms  of  love,  inviting  all  who  would  to  find  pardon  and 
peace  in  him.  The  hosts  of  darkness  saw  that  they  did  not 
possess  unlimited  control,  and  they  understood  that  if  Christ's 
mission  should  be  successful,  their  rule  was  soon  to  end. 
Satan  raged  like  a  chained  lion,  and  defiantly  exhibited  his 
power  over  the  bodies  as  well  as  the  souls  of  men. 

The  fact  that  men  have  been  possessed  with  demons,  is 
clearly  stated  in  the  New  Testament.  The  persons  thus 
afflicted  were  not  merely  suffering  with  disease  from  natural 
causes.  Christ  had  perfect  understanding  of  that  with  which 
he  was  dealing,  and  he  recognized  the  direct  presence  and 
agency  of  evil  spirits. 

A  striking  example  of  their  number,  power,  and  malignity, 
and  also  of  the  power  and  mercy  of  Christ,  is  given  in  the 
Scripture  account  of  the  healing  of  the  demoniacs  at  Gadara. 
Those  wretched  maniacs,  spurning  all  restraint,  writhing, 
foaming,  raging,  were  filling  the  air  with  their  cries,  doing 
violence  to  themselves,  and  endangering  all  who  should 
approach  them.  Their  bleeding  and  disfigured  bodies  and 
distracted  minds  presented  a  spectacle  well-pleasing  to  the 
prince  of  darkness.  One  of  the  demons  controlling  the  suf- 
ferers declared,  "My  name  is  Legion;  for  we  are  many."1 
In  the  Roman  army  a  legion  consisted  of  from  three  to  five 
thousand  men.  Satan's  hosts  also  are  marshaled  in  com- 
panies, and  the  single  company  to  which  these  demons  be- 
longed numbered  no  less  than  a  legion. 

At  the  command  of  Jesus,  the  evil  spirits  departed  from 
their  victims,  leaving  them  calmly  sitting  at  the  Saviour's 

iMark5:9. 


CHRIST  HEALING  THE  DEMONIAC. 


AGENCY  OF  EVIL  SPIRITS.  515 


feet,  subdued,  intelligent,  and  gentle.  But  the  demons  were 
permitted  to  sweep  a  herd  of  swine  into  the  sea;  and  to  the 
dwellers  of  Gadara  the  loss  of  these  outweighed  the  blessings 
which  Christ  had  bestowed,  and  the  divine  Healer  was  en- 
treated to  depart.  This  was  the  result  which  Satan  designed 
to  secure.  By  casting  the  blame  of  their  loss  upon  Jesus, 
he  aroused  the  selfish  fears  of  the  people,  and  prevented 
them  from  listening  to  his  words.  Satan  is  constantly  ac- 
cusing Christians  as  the  cause  of  loss,  misfortune,  and  suf- 
fering, instead  of  allowing  the  reproach  to  fall  where  it  be- 
longs, upon  himself  and  his  agents. 

But  the  purposes  of  Christ  were  not  thwarted.  He  allowed 
the  evil  spirits  to  destroy  the  herd  of  swine  as  a  rebuke  to 
those  Jews  who  were  raising  these  unclean  beasts  for  the 
sake  of  gain.  Had  not  Christ  restrained  the  demons,  they 
would  have  plunged  into  the  sea,  not  only  the  swine,  but 
also  their  keepers  and  owners.  The  preservation  of  both 
the  keepers  and  the  owners  was  due  alone  to  his  power, 
mercifully  exercised  for  their  deliverance.  Furthermore, 
.this  event  was  permitted  to  take  place  that  the  disciples 
might  witness  the  cruel  power  of  Satan  upon  both  man  and 
beast.  The  Saviour  desired  his  followers  to  have  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  foe  whom  they  were  to  meet,  that  they  might 
not  be  deceived  and  overcome  by  his  devices.  It  was  also 
his  will  that  the  people  of  that  region  should  behold  his 
power  to  break  the  bondage  of  Satan  and  release  his  cap- 
tives. And  though  Jesus  himself  departed,  the  men  so 
marvelously  delivered  remained  to  declare  the  mercy  of 
their  Benefactor. 

Other  instances  of  a  similar  nature  are  recorded  in  the 
Scriptures.  The  daughter  of  the  Syro-Phenician  woman  was 
grievously  vexed  with  a  devil,  whom  Jesus  cast  out  by  Ms 
word.1  One  "  possessed  with  a  devil,  blind,  and  dumb,"  *  8, 
youth  who  had  a  dumb  spirit,  that  ofttimes  "cast  him  into 
the  fire,  and  into  the  waters,  to  destroy  him," 3  the  maniac, 

1  Mark  7  : 26-30.  *  Matt.  12  :  22.  *  Mark  9 : 17-27. 


516  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

who,  tormented  by  "a  spirit  of  an  unclean  devil,"1  disturbed 
the  Sabbath  quiet  of  the  synagogue  at  Capernaum,  were  all 
healed  by  the  compassionate  Saviour.  In  nearly  every  in- 
stance, Christ  addressed  the  demon  as  an  intelligent  entity, 
commanding  him  to  come  out  of  his  victim  and  to  torment 
him  no  more.  The  worshipers  at  Capernaum,  beholding  his 
mighty  power,  "were  all  amazed,  and  spake  among  them- 
selves, saying,  What  a  word  is  this!  for  with  authority  and 
power  he  commandeth  the  unclean  spirits,  and  they  come 
out."  l 

Those  possessed  with  devils  are  usually  represented  as 
being  in  a  condition  of  great  suffering;  yet  there  were  ex- 
ceptions to  this  rule.  For  the  sake  of  obtaining  super- 
natural power,  some  welcomed  the  Satanic  influence.  These 
of  course  had  no  conflict  with  the  demons.  Of  this  class 
were  those  who  possessed  the  spirit  of  divination, — Simon 
Magus,  Elymas  the  sorcerer,  and  the  damsel  who  followed 
Paul  and  Silas  at  Philippi. 

None  are  in  greater  danger  from  the  influence  of  evil 
spirits  than  are  those  who,  notwithstanding  the  direct  and 
ample  testimony  of  the  Scriptures,  deny  the  existence  and 
agency  of  the  devil  and  his  angels.  So  long  as  we  are 
ignorant  of  their  wiles,  they  have  almost  inconceivable  ad- 
vantage; many  give  heed  to  their  suggestions  while  they 
suppose  themselves  to  be  following  the  dictates  of  their  own 
wisdom.  This  is  why,  as  we  approach  the  close  of  time, 
when  Satan  is  to  work  with  greatest  power  to  deceive  and 
destroy,  he  spreads  everywhere  the  belief  that  he  does  not 
exist.  It  is  his  policy  to  conceal  himself  and  his  manner  of 
working. 

There  is  nothing  that  the  great  deceiver  fears  so  much  as 
that  we  shall  become  acquainted  with  his  devices.  The 
better  to  disguise  his  real  character  and  purposes,  he  has 
caused  himself  to  be  so  represented  as  to  excite  no  stronger 
emotion  than  ridicule  or  contempt.  He  is  well  pleased  to 

1  Luke  4  :  33-36. 


AGENCY  OF  EVIL  SPIRITS.  517 


be  painted  as  a  ludicrous  or  loathsome  object,  misshapen, 
half  animal  and  half  human.  He  is  pleased  to  hear  his 
name  used  in  sport  and  mockery  by  those  who  think  them- 
selves intelligent  and  well-informed. 

It  is  because  he  lias  masked  himself  with  consummate 
.•kill  that  the  question  is  so  widely  asked,  "Does  such  a  being 
really  exist?"  It  is  an  evidence  of  his  success  that  theories 
giving  the  lie  to  the  plainest  testimony  of  the  Scriptures  are 
so  generally  received  in  the  religious  world.  And  it  is  be- 
cause Satan  can  most  readily  control  the  minds  of  those  who 
are  unconscious  of  his  influence  that  the  Word  of  God  gives 
us  so  many  examples  of  his  malignant  work,  unveiling  be- 
fore us  his  secret  forces,  and  thus  placing  us  on  our  guard 
against  his  assaults. 

The  power  and  malice  of  Satan  and  his  host  might  justly 
alarm  us,  were  it  not  that  we  may  find  shelter  and  deliv- 
erance in  the  superior  power  of  our  Redeemer.  We  care- 
fully secure  our  houses  with  bolts  and  locks  to  protect  our 
property  and  our  lives  from  evil  men;  but  we  seldom  think 
of  the  evil  angels  who  are  constantly  seeking  access  to  us, 
and  against  whose  attacks  we  have,  in  our  own  strength, 
no  method  of  defense.  If  permitted,  they  can  distract  our 
minds,  disorder,  torment  our  bodies,  destroy  our  possessions 
and  our  lives.  Their  only  delight  is  in  misery  and  destruc- 
tion. Fearful  is  the  condition  of  those  who  resist  the  divine 
claims,  and  yield  to  Satan's  temptations,  until  God  gives  them 
up  to  the  control  of  evil  spirits.  But  those  who  follow  Christ 
are  ever  safe  under  his  watchcare.  Angels  that  excel  in 
strength  are  sent  from  Heaven  to  protect  them.  The  wicked 
one  cannot  break  through  the  guard  which  God  has  stationed 
about  his  people. 


CHAPTER    XXXII. 


SNARES  OF  SATAN. 

THE  great  controversy  between  Christ  and  Satan,  that  has 
been  carried  forward  for  nearly  six  thousand  years,  is  soon 
to  close;  and  the  wicked  one  redoubles  his  efforts  to  defeat 
the  work  of  Christ  in  man's  behalf,  and  to  fasten  souls  in 
his  snares.  To  hold  the  people  in  darkness  and  impenitence 
till  the  Saviour's  mediation  is  ended,  and  there  is  no  longer 
a  sacrifice  for  sin,  is  the  object  which  he  seeks  to  accomplish. 

When  there  is  no  special  effort  made  to  resist  his  power, 
when  indifference  prevails  in  the  church  and  the  world, 
Satan  is  not  concerned;  for  he  is  in  no  danger  of  losing  those 
whom  he  is  leading  captive  at  his  will.  But  when  the  atten- 
tion is  called  to  eternal  things,  and  souls  are  inquiring, 
"  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ?  "  he  is  on  the  ground,  seeking 
to  match  his  power  against  the  power  of  Christ,  and  to 
counteract  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  Scriptures  declare  that  upon  one  occasion,  when  the 
angels  of  God  came  to  present  themselves  before  the  Lord, 
Satan  came  also  among  them,1  not  to  bow  before  the  Eternal 
King,  but  to  further  his  own  malicious  designs  against  the 
righteous.  With  the  same  object  he  is  in  attendance  when 
men  assemble  for  the  worship  of  God.  Though  hidden 
from  sight,  he  is  working  with  all  diligence  to  control  the 
minds  of  the  worshipers.  Like  a  skillful  general,  he  lays 
his  plans  beforehand.  As  he  sees  the  messenger  of  God 
searching  the  Scriptures,  he  takes  note  of  the  subject  to  be 
presented  to  the  people.  Then  lie  ,':iiplov  ;  all  his  cunning 
and  shrewdness  to  so  control  circumstances  ii'j»r  ri»o  message 

1  Job  1:6. 
(518) 


StfARES  OF  SATAN.  519 


may  not  reach  those  whom  he  is  deceiving  on  that  very 
point.  The  one  who  most  needs  the  warning  will  be  urged 
into  some  business  transaction  which  requires  his  presence, 
or  will  by  some  other  means  be  prevented  from  hearing  the 
words  that  might  prove  to  him  a  savor  of  life  unto  life. 

Again,  Satan  sees  the  Lord's  servants  burdened  because 
of  the  spiritual  darkness  that  enshrouds  the  people.  He 
hears  their  earnest  prayers  for  divine  grace  and  power  to 
break  the  spell  of  indifference,  carelessness,  and  indolence. 
Then  with  renewed  zeal  he  plies  his  arts.  He  tempts  men 
to  the  indulgence  of  appetite  or  to  some  other  form  of  self- 
gratification,  and  thus  benumbs  their  sensibilities,  so  that 
they  fail  to  hear  the  very  things  which  they  most  need  to 
learn. 

Satan  well  knows  that  all  whom  he  can  lead  to  neglect 
prayer  and  the  searching  of  the  Scriptures  will  be  overcome 
by  his  attacks.  Therefore  he  invents  every  possible  device 
to  engross  the  mind.  There  has  ever  been  a  class  professing 
godliness,  who,  instead  of  following  on  to  know  the  truth, 
make  it  their  religion  to  seek  some  fault  of  character  or 
error  of  faith  in  those  with  whom  they  do  not  agree.  Such 
are  Satan's  right-hand  helpers.  Accusers  of  the  brethren 
are  not  few ;  and  they  are  always  active  when  God  is  at 
work,  and  his  servants  are  rendering  him  true  homage. 
They  will  put  a  false  coloring  upon  the  words  and  acts  of 
those  who  love  and  obey  the  truth.  They  will  represent 
the  most  earnest,  zealous,  self-denying  servants  of  Christ  as 
deceived  or  deceivers.  It  is  their  work  to  misrepresent  the 
motives  of  every  true  and  noble  deed,  to  circulate  insinua- 
tions, and  arouse  suspicion  in  the  minds  of  the  inexperienced. 
In  every  conceivable  manner  they  will  seek  to  cause  that 
which  is  pure  and  righteous  to  be  regarded  as  foul  and  de- 
ceptive. 

But  none  need  be  deceived  concerning  them.  It  may  be 
readily  seen  whose  children  they  are,  whose  example  they 
follow,  and  whose  work  they  do.  "  Ye  shall  know  them 


520  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


by  their  fruits." '  Their  course  resembles  that  of  Satan,  the 
envenomed  slanderer,  "the  accuser  of  our  brethren."2 

The  great  deceiver  has  many  agents  ready  to  present  any 
and  every  kind  of  error  to  ensnare  souls, — heresies  prepared 
to  suit  the  varied  tastes  and  capacities  of  those  whom  he 
would  ruin.  It  is  his  plan  to  bring  into  the  church  insin- 
cere, unregenerate  elements  that  wrill  encourage  doubt  and 
unbelief,  and  hinder  all  who  desire  to  see  the  work  of  God 
advance,  and  to  advance  with  it.  Many  who  have  no  real 
faith  in  God  or  in  his  Word,  assent  to  some  principles  of 
truth,  and  pass  as  Christians ;  and  thus  they  are  enabled  to 
introduce  their  errors  as  scriptural  doctrines. 

The  position  that  it  is  of  no  consequence  what  men  be- 
lieve, is  one  of  Satan's  most  successful  deceptions.  He  knows 
that  the  truth,  received  in  the  love  of  it,  sanctifies  the  soul 
of  the  receiver;  therefore  he  is  constantly  seeking  to  sub- 
stitute false  theories,  fables,  another  gospel.  From  the  be- 
ginning, the  servants  of  God  have  contended  against  false 
teachers,  not  merely  as  vicious  men,  but  as  inculcators  of 
falsehoods  that  were  fatal  to  the  soul.  Elijah,  Jeremiah, 
Paul,  firmly  and  fearlessly  opposed  those  who  were  turning 
men  from  the  Word  of  God.  That  liberality  which  regards 
a  correct  religious  faith  as  unimportant,  found  no  favor  with 
these  holy  defenders  of  the  truth. 

The  vague  and  fanciful  interpretations  of  Scripture,  and 
the  many  conflicting  theories  concerning  religious  faith,  that 
are  found  in  the  Christian  world,  are  the  work  of  our  great 
adversary  to  so  confuse  minds  that  they  shall  not  discern 
the  truth.  And  the  discord  and  division  which  exist  among 
the  churches  of  Christendom  are  in  a  great  measure  due  to 
the  prevailing  custom  of  wresting  the  Scriptures  to  support 
a  favorite  theory.  Instead  of  carefully  studying  God's  Won! 
with  humility  of  heart  to  obtain  a  knowledge  of  his  will, 
many  seek  only  to  discover  something  odd  or  original. 

In  order  to  sustain  erroneous  doctrines  or   unchristian 

iMatt.  7:16.  aliev.  12:10. 


SNARES  OF  SATAN.  521 


practices,  some  will  seize  upon  passages  of  Scripture  sep- 
arated from  the  context,  perhaps  quoting  half  of  a  single 
verse  as  proving  their  point,  when  the  remaining  portion 
would  show  the  meaning  to  be  quite  the  opposite.  With 
the  cunning  of  the  serpent,  they  entrench  themselves  behind 
disconnected  utterances  construed  to  suit  their  carnal  de- 
sires. Thus  do  many  willfully  pervert  the  Word  of  God. 
Others,  who  have  an  active  imagination,  seize  upon  the 
figures  and  symbols  of  Holy  Writ,  interpret  to  suit  their 
fancy,  with  little  regard  to  the  testimony  of  Scripture  as  its 
own  interpreter,  and  then  they  present  their  vagaries  as  the 
teachings  of  the  Bible. 

Whenever  the  study  of  the  Scriptures  is  entered  upon 
without  a  prayerful,  humble,  teachable  spirit,  the  plainest 
and  simplest  as  well  as  the  most  difficult  passages  will  be 
wrested  from  their  true  meaning.  The  papal  leaders  select 
such  portions  of  Scripture  as  best  serve  their  purpose,  in- 
terpret-to  suit  themselves,  and  then  present  these  to  the 
people,  while  they  deny  them  the  privilege  of  studying  the 
Bible,  and  understanding  its  sacred  truths  for  themselves. 
The  whole  Bible  should  be  given  to  the  people  just  as  it 
reads.  It  would  be  better  for  them  not  to  have  Bible  in- 
struction at  all  than  to  have  the  teaching  of  the  Scriptures 
thus  grossly  misrepresented. 

The  Bible  was  designed  to  be  a  guide  to  all  who  wish  to 
become  acquainted  with  the  will  of  their  Maker.  God  gave 
to  men  the  sure  word  of  prophecy;  angels  and  even  Christ 
himself  came  to  make  known  to  Daniel  and  John  the  things 
that  must  shortly  come  to  pass.  Those  important  matters 
ihat  concern  our  salvation  were  not  left  involved  in  mystery. 
They  were  not  revealed  in  such  a  way  as  to  perplex  and 
mislead  the  honest  seeker  after  truth.  Said  the  Lord  by 
the  prophet  Habakkuk,  "Write  the  vision,  and  make  it 
plain,  .  .  .  that  he  may  run  that  readeth  it."1  The 
Word  of  God  is  plain  to  all  who  study  it  with  a  prayerful 

2:2. 


522  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


heart.  Every  truly  honest  soul  will  come  to  the  light  of 
truth.  "  Light  is  sown  for  the  righteous." 1  And  no  church 
can  advance  in  holiness  unless  its  members  are  earnestly 
seeking  for  truth  as  for  hid  treasure. 

By  the  cry,  Liberality,  men  are  blinded  to  the  devices  of 
their  adversary,  while  he  is  all  the  time  working  steadily 
for  the  accomplishment  of  his  object.  As  he  succeeds  in 
supplanting  the  Bible  by  human  speculations,  the  law  of 
God  is  set  aside,  and  the  churches  are  under  the  bondage 
of  sin  while  they  claim  to  be  free. 

To  many,  scientific  research  has  become  a  curse.  God 
has  permitted  a  flood  of  light  to  be  poured  upon  the  world 
in  discoveries  in  science  and  art;  but  even  the  greatest 
minds,  if  not  guided  by  the  Word  of  God  in  their  research, 
become  bewildered  in  their  attempts  to  investigate  the  re- 
lations of  science  and  revelation. 

Human  knowledge  of  both  material  and  spiritual  things 
is  partial  and  imperfect;  therefore  many  are  unable  to  har- 
monize their  views  of  science  with  Scripture  statements. 
Many  accept  mere  theories  and  speculations  as  scientific 
facts,  and  they  think  that  God's  Word  is  to  be  tested  by  the 
teachings  of  "science  falsely  so  called."  The  Creator  and 
his  works  are  beyond  their  comprehension;  and  because 
they  cannot  explain  these  by  natural  laws,  Bible  history  is 
regarded  as  unreliable.  Those  who  doubt  the  reliability  of 
the  -records  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  too  often  go  a 
step  farther,  and  doubt  the  existence  of  God,  and  attribute 
infinite  power  to  nature.  Having  let  go  their  anchor,  they 
are  left  to  beat  about  upon  the  rocks  of  infidelity. 

Thus  many  err  from  the  faith,  and  are  seduced  by  the 
devil.  Men  have  endeavored  to  be  wiser  than  their  Creator; 
•human  philosophy  lias  attempted  to  search  out  and  explain 
mysteries  which  will  never  be  revealed,  through  the  eternal 
ages.  If  men  would  but  search  and  understand  what  God 
has  made  known  of  himself  and  his  purposes,  they  would 
obtain  such  a  view  of  the  glory,  majesty,  and  power  of  Je- 

1  Pa.  97: 11. 


SNARES  OF  SA  TAN:  523 


hovah,  that  they  would  realize  their  own  littleness,  and 
would-be  content  with  that  which  has  heen  revealed  for 
themselves  and  their  children. 

It  is  a  masterpiece  of  Satan's  deceptions  to  keejb  the  minds 
of  men  searching  and  conjecturing  in  regard  to  that  which 
God  has  not  made  known,  and  which  he  does  riot  intend 
that  we  shall  understand.  It  was  thus  that  Lucifer  lost  his 
place  in  Heaven.  He  became  dissatisfied  because  all  the 
secrets  of  God's  purposes  were  not  confided  to  him,  and  he 
entirely  disregarded  that  which  was  revealed  concerning  his 
own  work  in  the  lofty  position  assigned  him.  By  arousing 
the  same  discontent  in  the  angels  under  his  command,  he 
caused  their  fall.  Now  he  seeks  to  imbue  the  minds  of  men 
with  the  same  spirit,  and  to  lead  them  also  to  disregard  the 
direct  commands  of  God. 

Those  who  are  unwilling  to  accept  the  plain,  cutting  truths 
of  the  Bible,  are  continually  seeking  for  pleasing  fables  that 
will  quiet  the  conscience.  The  less  spiritual,  self-denying, 
and  humiliating  the  doctrines  presented,  the  greater  the 
favor  with  which  they  are  received.  These  persons  degrade 
the  intellectual  powers  to  serve  their  carnal  desires.  Too 
wise  in  their  own  conceit  to  search  the  Scriptures  with  con- 
trition of  soul  and  earnest  prayer  for  divine  guidance,  they 
have  no  shield  from  delusion.  Satan  is  ready  to  supply  the 
heart's  desire,  and  he  palms  off  his  deceptions  in  the  place 
of  truth.  It  was  thus  that  the  papacy  gained  its  power  over 
the  minds  of  men;  and  by  rejection  of  the  truth  because  it 
involves  a  cross,  Protestants  are  following  the  same  path. 
All  who  neglect  the  Word  of  God  to  study  convenience  and 
policy,  that  they  may  not  be  at  variance  with  the  world, 
will  be  left  to  receive  damnable  heresy  for  religious  truth. 
Every  conceivable  form  of  error  will  be  accepted  by  those 
who  willfully  reject  the  truth.  He  who  looks  with  horror 
upon  one  deception  will  readily  receive  another.  The 
apostle  Paul,  speaking  of  a  class  who  "received  not  the 
love  of  the  truth,  that  they  might  be  saved,"  declares, 


524  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


"  For  this  cause  God  shall  send  them  strong  delusion,  that 
they  should  believe  a  lie,  that  they  all  might  be  damned 
who  believed  not  the  truth,  but  had  pleasure  in  unright- 
eousness." l  With  such  a  warning  before  us,  it  behooves  us 
to  be  on  our  guard  as  to  what  doctrines  we  receive 

Among  the  most  successful  agencies  of  the  great  deceiver 
are  the  delusive  teachings  and  lying  wonders  of  Spiritualism. 
Disguised  as  an  angel  of  light,  he  spreads  his  nets  where 
least  suspected.  If  men  would  but  study  the  Book  of  God 
with  earnest  prayer  that  they  might  understand  it,  they 
would  not  be  left  in  darkness  to  receive  false  doctrines.  But 
as  they  reject  the  truth,  they  fall  a  prey  to  deception. 

Another  dangerous  error,  is  the  doctrine  that  denies  the 
divinity  of  Christ,  claiming  that  he  had  no  existence  before 
his  advent  to  this  world.  This  theory  is  received  with  favor 
by  a  large  class  who  profess  to  believe  the  Bible;  yet  it 
directly  contradicts  the  plainest  statements  of  our  Saviour 
concerning  his  relationship  with  the  Father,  his  divine  char- 
acter, and  his  pre-existence.  It  cannot  be  entertained  with- 
out the  most  unwarranted  wresting  of  the  Scriptures.  It 
not  only  lowers  man's  conceptions  of  the  work  of  redemp- 
tion, but  undermines  faith  in  the  Bible  as  a  revelation  from 
God.  While  this  renders  it  the  more  dangerous,  it  makes 
it  also  harder  to  meet.  If  men  reject  the  testimony  of  the 
inspired  Scriptures  concerning  the  divinity  of  Christ,  it  is 
in  vain  to  argue  the. point  with  them;  for  no  argument, 
however  conclusive,  could  convince  them.  "The  natural 
man  receiveth  not  the  tilings  of  the  Spirit  of  God;  for  they 
are  foolishness  unto  him;  neither  can  he  know  them,  be- 
cause they  are  spiritually  discerned."2  None  who  hold  this 
error  can  have  a  true  conception  of  the  character  or  the 
mission  of  Christ,  or  of  the  great  plan  of  God  for  man's  re- 
demption. 

Still  another  subtle  and  mischievous  error  is  the  fast- 
spreading  belief  that  Satan  has  no  existence  as  a  personal 

1 2  Thess.  2  : 10-12.  » 1  Cor.  2  :  14. 


SCARES  OF  SA  TAN.  525 


being;  that  the  name  is  used  in  Scripture  merely  to  rep- 
resent men's  evil  thoughts  and  desires. 

The  teaching  so  widely  echoed  from  popular  pulpits,  that 
the  second  advent  of  Christ  is  his  coming  to  each  individual 
at  death,  is  a  device  to  divert  the  minds  of  men  from  his 
personal  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.  For  years  Satan 
has  thus  been  saying,  "Behold,  he  is  in  the  secret  cham- 
bers;"1 and  many  souls  have  been  lost  by  accepting  this 
deception. 

Again,  worldly  wisdom  teaches  that  prayer  is  not  essential. 
Men  of  science  claim  that  there  can  be  no  real  answer  to 
prayer;  that  this  would  be  a  violation  of  law,  a  miracle,  and 
that  miracles  have  no  existence.  The  universe,  say  they, 
is  governed  by  fixed  laws,  and  God  himself  does  nothing 
contrary  to  these  laws.  Thus  they  represent  God  as  bound 
by  his  own  laws;  as  if  the  operation  of  divine  laws  could 
exclude  divine  freedom.  Such  teaching  is  opposed  to  the 
testimony  of  the  Scriptures.  Were  not  miracles  wrought 
by  Christ  and  his  apostles?  The  same  compassionate  Sav- 
iour lives  to-day,  and  he  is  as  willing  to  listen  to  the  prayer 
of  faith  as  when  he  walked  visibly  among  men.  The  natural 
co-operates  with  the  supernatural.  It  is  a  part  of  God's 
plan  to  grant  us,  in  answer  to  the  prayer  of  faith,  that 
which  he  would  not  bestow  did  we  not  thus  ask. 

Innumerable  are  the  erroneous  doctrines  and  fanciful 
ideas  that  are  obtaining  among  the  churches  of  Christendom. 
It  is  impossible  to  estimate  the  evil  results  of  removing  one 
of  the  landmarks  fixed  by  the  Word  of  God.  Few  who 
venture  to  do  this  stop  with  the  rejection  of  a  single  truth. 
The  majority  continue  to  set  aside  one  after  another  of  the 
principles  of  truth,  until  they  become  actual  infidels. 

The  errors  of  popular  theology  have  driven  many  a  soul 
to  skepticism,  who  might  otherwise  have  been  a  believer  in 
the  Scriptures.  It  is  impossible  for  him  to  accept  doctrines 
which  outrage  his  sense  of  justice,  mercy,  and  benevolence; 

1  Matt.  24:  23-26. 

38 


526  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

and  since  these  are  represented  as  the  teaching  of  the  Bible, 
he  refuses  to  receive  it  as  the  Word  of  God. 

And  this  is  the  object  which  Satan  seeks  to  accomplish. 
There  is  nothing  that  he  desires  more  than  to  destroy  con- 
fidence in  God  and  in  his  Word.  Satan  stands  at  the  head 
of  the  great  army  of  doubters,  and  he  works  to  the  utmost 
of  his  power  to  beguile  souls  into  his  ranks.  It  is  becoming 
fashionable  to  doubt.  There  is  a  large  class  by  whom  the 
Word  of  God  is  looked  upon  with  distrust  for  the  same 
reason  as  was  its  Author — because  it  reproves  and  condemns 
sin.  Those  who  are  unwilling  to  obey  its  requirements  en- 
deavor to  overthrow  its  authority.  They  read  the  Bible,  or 
listen  to  its  teachings  -as  presented  from  the  sacred  desk, 
merely  to  find  fault  with  the  Scriptures  or  with  the  sermon. 
Not  a  few  become  infidels  in  order  to  justify  or  excuse  them- 
selves in  neglect  of  duty.  Others  adopt  skeptical  principles 
from  pride  and  indolence.  Too  ease-loving  to  distinguish 
themselves  by  accomplishing  anything  worthy  of  honor, 
which  requires  effort  and  self-denial,  they  aim  to  secure  a 
reputation  for  superior  wisdom  by  criticising  the  Bible. 
There  is  much  which  the  finite  mind,  unenlightened  by 
divine  wisdom,  is  powerless  to  comprehend;  and  thus  they 
find  occasion  to  criticise.  There  are  many  who  seem  to  feel 
that  it  is  a  virtue  to  stand  on  the  side. of  unbelief,  skepticism, 
and  infidelity.  But  underneath  an  appearance  of  candor, 
it  will  be  found  that  such  persons  are  actuated  by  self- 
confidence  and  pride.  Many  delight  in  finding  something 
in  the  Scriptures  to  puzzle  the  minds  of  others.  Some  at 
first  criticise  and  reason  on  the  wrong  side,  from  a  mere  love 
of  controversy.  They  do  not  realize  that  they  are  thus  en- 
tangling themselves  in  the  snare  of  the  fowler.  But  having 
openly  expressed  unbelief,  they  feel  that  they  must  main- 
tain their  position.  Thus  they  unite  with  the  ungodly,  and 
close  to  themselves  the  gates  of  Paradise. 

God  has  given  in  his  Word  sufficient  evidence  of  its  divine 
character.  The  great  truths  which  concern  our  redemption 


SNARES  OF  SA  TAN.  527 


are  clearly  presented.  By  the  aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which 
is  promised  to  all  who  seek  it  in  sincerity,  every  man  may 
understand  these  truths  for  himself.  God  has  granted  to 
men  a  strong  foundation  upon  which  to  rest  their  faith. 

Yet  the  finite  minds  of  men  are  inadequate  fully  to  com- 
prehend the  plans  and  purposes  of  the  Infinite  One.  We 
can  never  by  searching  find  out  God.  We  must  not  attempt 
to  lift  with  presumptuous  hand  the  curtain  behind  which 
he  veils  his  majesty.  The  apostle  exclaims,  "How  un- 
searchable are  his  judgments,  and  his  ways  past  finding 
out! " l  We  can  so  far  comprehend  his  dealings  with  us,  and 
the  motives  by  which  he  is  actuated,  that  we  may  discern 
boundless  love  and  mercy  united  to  infinite  power.  Our 
Father  in  Heaven  orders  everything  in  wisdom  and  right- 
eousness, and  we  are  not  to  be  dissatisfied  and  distrustful, 
but  to  bow  in  reverent  submission.  He  will  reveal  to  us 
as  much  of  his  purposes  as  it  is  for  our  good  to  know,  and 
beyond  that  we  must  trust  the  Hand  that  is  omnipotent,  the 
Heart  that  is  full  of  love. 

While  God  has  given  ample  evidence  for  faith,  he  will 
never  remove  all  excuse  for  unbelief.  All  who  look  for 
hooks  to  hang  their  doubts  upon,  wTill  find  them.  And 
those  wrho  refuse  to  accept  and  obey  God's  Word  until  every 
objection  has  been  removed,  and  there  is  no  longer  an  oppor- 
tunity for  doubt,  will  never  come  to  the  light. 

Distrust  of  God  is  the  natural  outgrowth  of  the  unrenewed 
heart,  which  is  at  enmity  with  him.  But  faith  is  inspired 
by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  it  will  flourish  only  as  it  is  cher- 
ished. No  man  can  become  strong  in  faith  without  a  deter- 
mined effort.  Unbelief  strengthens  as  it  is  encouraged;  and 
if  men,  instead  of  dwelling  upon  the  evidences  which  God 
has  given  to  sustain  their  faith,  will  permit  themselves  to 
question  and  cavil,  they  will  find  their  doubts  constantly 
becoming  more  confirmed. 

But  those  who  doubt  God's  promises,  and  distrust. the 
assurance  of  his  grace,  are  dishonoring  him ;  and  their  in- 

'Rom.  11  :33. 


528  TEE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

fluence,  instead  of  drawing  others  to  Christ,  tends  to  repel 
them  from  him.  They  are  unproductive  trees,  that  spread 
their  dark  branches  far  and  wide,  shutting  away  the  sun- 
light from  other  plants,  and  causing  them  to  droop  and  die 
under  the  chilling  shadow.  The  life-work  of  these  persons 
will  appear  as  a  never-ceasing  witness  against  them.  They 
are  sowing  seeds  of  doubt  and  skepticism  that  will  yield  an 
unfailing  harvest. 

There  is  but  one  course  for  those  to  pursue  who  honestly 
desire  to  be  freed  from  doubts.  Instead  of  questioning  and 
caviling  concerning  that  which  they  do  not  understand,  let 
them  give  heed  to  the  light  which  already  shines  upon 
them,  and  they  will  receive  greater  light.  Let  them  do 
every  duty  which  has  been  made  plain  to  their  under- 
standing, and  they  will  be  enabled  to  understand  and  per- 
form those  of  which  they  are  now  in  doubt. 

Satan  can  present  a  counterfeit  so  closely  resembling  the 
truth  that  it  deceives  those  who  are  willing  to  be  deceived, 
who  desire  to  shun  the  self-denial  and  sacrifice  demanded  by 
the  truth ;  but  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  hold  under  his 
power  one  soul  who  honestly  desires,  at  whatever  cost,  to 
know  the  truth.  Christ  is  the  truth,  and  the  "light  which 
lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world."1  The 
Spirit  of  truth  has  been  sent,  to  guide  men  into  all  truth. 
And  upon  the  authority  of  the  Son  of  God  it  is  declared, 
"  Seek,  and  ye  shall  find."  "  If  any  man  will  do  His  will,  he 
shall  know  of  the  doctrine."2 

The  followers  of  Christ  know  little  of  the  plots  which 
Satan  and  his  hosts  are  forming  against  them.  But  He  who 
sitteth  in  the  heavens  will  overrule  all  these  devices  for  the 
accomplishment  of  his  deep  designs.  The  Lord  permits  his 
people  to  be  subjected  to  the  fiery  ordeal  of  temptation,  not 
because  he  takes  pleasure  in  their  distress  and  affliction,  but 
because  this  process  is  essential  to  tlieir  final  victory.  He 
could  not,  consistently  with  his  own  glory,  shield  them  from 

1  Johu  1:9.  'Matt.  7  :  7;  John  7  : 17. 


StfA&ES  OF  SATAXT.  529 


temptation ;  for  the  very  object,  of  the  trial  is  to  prepare 
them  to  resist  all  the  allurements  of  evil. 

Neither  wicked  men  nor  devils  can  hinder  the  work  of 
God  or  shut  out  his  presence  from  his  people,  if  they  will, 
with  subdued,  contrite  hearts,  confess  and  put  away  their 
sins,  and  in  faith  claim  his  promises.  Every  temptation, 
every  opposing  influence,  whether  open  or  secret,  may  be 
successfully  resisted,  "  not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by 
my  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts." l 

"The  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  over  the  righteous,  and  his 
ears  are  open  unto  their  prayers.  .  .  .  And  who  is  he 
that  will  harm  you,  if  ye  be  followers  of  that  which  is  good?'' 2 
When  Balaam,  allured  by  the  promise  of  rich  rewards,  prac- 
ticed enchantments  against  Israel,  and  by  sacrifices  to  the 
Lord,  sought  to  invoke  a  curse  upon  his  people,  the  Spirit 
of  God  forbade  the  evil  which  he  longed  to  pronounce,  and 
Balaam  was  forced  to  exclaim,  "  How  shall  I  curse,  whom 
God  hath  not  cursed  ?  or  how  shall  I  defy,  whom  the  Lord 
hath  not  defied  ?  "  "  Let  me  die  the  death  of  the  righteous, 
and  let  my  last  end  be  like  his!"  When  sacrifice  had 
again  been  offered,  the  ungodly  prophet  declared :  "  Behold, 
I  have  received  commandment  to  bless;  and  he  hath  blessed; 
and  I  cannot  reverse  it.  He  hath  not  beheld  iniquity  in 
Jacob,  neither  hath'he  seen  perverseness  in  Israel;  the  Lord 
his  God  is  with  him,  and  the  shout  of  a  King  is  among 
them."  "Surely  there  is  no  enchantment  against  Jacob, 
neither  is  there  any  divination  against  Israel.  According 
to  this  time  it  shall  be  said  of  Jacob  and  of  Israel,  What 
hath  God  wrought !  " 3  Yet  a  third  altar  was  erected,  and 
again  Balaam  essayed  to  secure  a  curse.  But  from  the  un- 
willing lips  of  the  prophet,  the  Spirit  of  God  declared  the 
prosperity  of  his  chosen,  and  rebuked  the  folly  and  malice 
of  their  foes:  "Blessed  is  he  that  blesseth  thee,  and  cursed 
is  he  that  curseth  thee." a 

The  people  of  Israel  were  at  this  time  loyal  to  God ;  and 

1Zech.  4:6.     *  1  Pet.  3  : 12,  13.     »  Num.  23  : 8,  10,  20,  21,  23  ;  24  : 9. 


530  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


so  long  as  they  continued  in  obedience  to  his  law,  no  power 
in  earth  or  hell  could  prevail  against  them.  But  the  curse 
which  Balaam  had  not  been  permitted  to  pronounce  against 
God's  people,  he  finally  succeeded  in  bringing  upon  them 
by  seducing  them  into  sin.  When  they  transgressed  God's 
commandments,  then  they  separated  themselves  from  him, 
and  they  were  left  to  feel  the  power  of  the  destroyer. 

Satan  is  well  aware  that  the  weakest  soul  who  abides  in 
Christ  is  more  than  a  match  for  the  hosts  of  darkness,  and 
that,  should  he  reveal  himself  openly,  he  would  be  met  and 
resisted.  Therefore  he  seeks  to  draw  away  the  soldiers  of 
the  cross  from  their  strong  fortification,  while  he  lies  in 
ambush  with  his  forces,  ready  to  destroy  all  who  venture 
upon  his  ground.  Only  in  humble  reliance  upon  God,  and 
obedience  to  all  his  commandments,  can  we  be  secure.  No 
man  is  safe  for  a  day  or  an  hour  without  prayer.  Especially 
should  we  entreat  the  Lord  for  wisdom  to  understand  his 
Word.  Here  are  revealed  the  wiles  of  the  tempter,  and  the 
means  by  which  he  may  be  successfully  resisted.  Satan  is 
an  expert  in  quoting  Scripture,  placing  his  own  interpre- 
tation upon  passages  by  which  he  hopes  to  cause  us  to 
stumble.  We  should  study  the  Bible  with  humility  of 
heart,  never  losing  sight  of  our  dependence  upon  God. 
While  we  must  constantly  guard  against  the  devices  of 
Satan,  we  should  pray  in  faith  continually,  "Lead  us  not 
into  temptation." 


CHAPTER    XXXIIL 


THE  FIRST   GREAT  DECEPTION. 

WITH  the  earliest  history  of  man,  Satan  began  his  efforts 
to  deceive  our  race.  He  who  had  incited  rebellion  in  Heaven 
desired  to  bring  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  to  unite  with 
him  in  his  warfare  against  the  government  of  God.  Adam 
and  Eve  had  been  perfectly  happy  in  obedience  to  the  law 
of  God,  and  this  fact  was  a  constant  testimony  against  the 
claim  which  Satan  had  urged  in  Heaven,  that  God's  law  was 
oppressive,  and  opposed  to  the  good  of  his  creatures.  And, 
furthermore,  Satan's  envy  was  excited  as  he  looked  upon 
the  beautiful  home  prepared  for  the  sinless  pair.  He  deter- 
mined to  cause  their  fall,  that,  having  separated  them  from 
God,  and  brought  them  under  his  own  power,  he  might  gain 
possession  of  the  earth,  and  here  establish  his  kingdom,  in 
opposition  to  the  Most  High. 

Had  Satan  revealed  himself  in  his  real  character,  he 
would  have  been  repulsed  at  once,  for  Adam  and  Eve  had 
been  warned  against  this  dangerous  foe;  but  he  worked  in 
the  dark,  concealing  his  purpose,  that  he  might  more  effect- 
ually accomplish  his  object.  Employing  as  his  medium  the 
serpent,  then  a  creature  of  fascinating  appearance,  he  ad- 
dressed himself  to  Eve,  "  Hath  God  said,  Ye  shall  not  eat 
of  every  tree  of  the  garden  ?  " l  Had  Eve  refrained  from 
entering  into  argument  with  the  tempter,  she  would  have 
been  safe;  but  she  ventured  to  parley  with  him,  and  fell  a 
victim  to  his  wiles.  It  is  thus  that  many  are  still  overcome. 
They  doubt  and  argue  concerning  the  requirements  of  God, 

»Gen.  3:1. 

(531) 


532  THE   GREAT   COXTKOVEJtRY. 


and  instead  of  obeying  the  divine  commands,  they  accept 
human  theories,  which  but  disguise  the  devices  of  Satan. 

"  The  woman  said  unto  the  serpent,  We  may  eat  of  the 
fruit  of  the  trees  of  the  garden;  but  of  the  fruit  of  the  tree 
which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  garden,  God  hath  said,  Ye 
shall  not  eat  of  it,  neither  shall  ye  touch  it,  lest  ye  die.  And 
the  serpent  said  unto  the  woman,  Ye  shall  not  surely  die; 
for  God  doth  know  that  in  the  day  ye  eat  thereof,  then  your 
eyes  shall  be  opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as  gods,  knowing  good 
and  evil." l  He  declared  that  they  would  become  like  God, 
possessing  greater  wisdom  than  before,  and  being  capable 
of  a  higher  state  of  existence.  Eve  yielded  to  temptation ; 
and  through  her  influence,  Adam  was  led  into  sin.  They 
accepted  the  words  of  the  serpent,  that  God  did  not  mean 
what  he  said;  they  distrusted  their  Creator,  and  imagined 
that  he  was  restricting  their  liberty,  and  that  they  might 
obtain  great  wisdom  and  exaltation  by  transgressing  his  law. 

But  what  did  Adam,  after  his  sin,  find  to  be  the  meaning 
of  the  words,  "  In  the  day  that  thou  eatest  thereof  thou  shalt 
surely  die"?  Did  he  find  them  to  mean,  as  Satan  had  led 
him  to  believe,  that  he  was  to  be  ushered  into  a  more  ex- 
alted state  of  existence?  Then  indeed  there  was  great 
good  to  be  gained  by  transgression,  and  Satan  was  proved 
to  be  a  benefactor  of  the  race.  But  Adam  did  not  find  this 
to  be  the  meaning  of  the  divine  sentence.  God  declared 
that  as  a  penalty  for  his  sin,  man  should  return  to  the 
ground  whence  he  was  taken:  "Dust  thou  art,  and  iinto 
dust  shalt  thou  return."  *  The  words  of  Satan,  "  Your  eyes 
shall  be  opened,"  proved  to  be  true  in  this  sense  only:  After 
Adam  and  Eve  had  disobeyed  God,  their  eyes  were  opened 
to  discern  their  folly;  they  did  know  evil,  and  they  tasted 
the  bitter  fruit  of  transgression. 

In  the  midst  of  Eden  grew  the  tree  of  life,  whose  fruit 
had  the  power  of  perpetuating  life.  Had  Adam  remained 
obedient  to  God,  he  would  have  continued  to  enjoy  free 

i  Gen.  3:2-5.  »  Gen.  3:19. 


TTTE  FTRST  ORE  A  T  DECEPTION.  533 


access  to  this  tree,  and  would  have  lived  forever.  But  when 
he  sinned,  he  was  cut  off  from  partaking  of  the  tree  of  life, 
and  lie  became  subject  to  death.  The  divine  sentence,  "  Dust 
thou  art,  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return,"  points  to  the 
utter  extinction  of  life. 

Immortality,  promised  to  man  on  condition  of  obedience, 
had  been  forfeited  by  transgression.  Adam  could  not  trans- 
mit to  his  posterity  that  which  he  did  not  possess;  and  there 
could  have  been  no  hope  for  the  fallen  race,  had  not  God, 
by  the  sacrifice  of  his  Son,  brought  immortality  within  their 
reach.  While  "  death  passed  upon  all  men,  for  that  all 
have  sinned,"  Christ  "hath  brought  life  and  immortality 
to  light  through  the  gospel."1  And  only  through  Christ 
can  immortality  be  obtained.  Said  Jesus,  "  He  that  believeth 
on  the  Son  hath  everlasting  life;  and  he  that  believeth  not 
the  Son  shall  not  see  life."2  Every  man  may  come  in  pos- 
session of  this  priceless  blessing  if  he  will  comply  with  the 
conditions.  All  "who  by  patient  continuance  in  well-doing 
seek  for  glory  and  honor  and  immortality,"  will  receive 
eternal  life.3 

The  only  one  who  promised  Adam  life  in  disobedience 
was  the  great  deceiver.  And  the  declaration  of  the  serpent 
to  Eve  in  Eden, — "  Ye  shall  not  surely  die," — was  the  first 
sermon  ever  preached  upon  the  immortality  of  the  soul. 
Yet  this  declaration,  resting  solely  upon  the  authority  of 
Satan,  is  echoed  from  the  pulpits  of  Christendom,  and  is  re- 
ceived by  the  majority  of  mankind  as  readily  as  it  was 
received  by  our  first  parents.  The  divine  sentence,  "  The 
soul  that  sinneth,  it  shall  die,"4  is  made  to  mean,  The  soul 
that  sinneth,  it  shall  not  die,  but  live  eternally.  We  cannot 
but  wonder  at  the  strange  infatuation  which  renders  men 
so  credulous  concerning  the  words  of  Satan,  and  so  unbe- 
lieving in  regard  to  the  words  of  God. 

Had  man,  after  his  fall,  been  allowed  free  access  to  the 

1  Rom.  5:12;  2  Tim.  1:10.  *  John  3:  36.          3  Rom.  2:7. 

*Eze.  18:20. 


534  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


tree  of  life,  he  would  have  lived  forever,  and  thus  sin.  would 
have  been  immortalized.  But  cherubim  and  a  flaming 
sword  kept  "the  way  of  the  tree  of  life,"  l  and  not  one  of  the 
family  of  Adam  has  been  permitted  to  pass  that  barrier  and 
partake  of  the  life-giving  fruit.  Therefore  there  is  not  an 
immortal  sinner. 

But  after  the  fall,  Satan  bade  his  angels  make  a  special 
effort  to  inculcate  the  belief  in  man's  natural  immortality; 
and  having  induced  the  people  to  receive  this  error,  they 
were  to  lead  them  on  to  conclude  that  the  sinner  wrould  live 
in  eternal  misery.  Now  the  prince  of  darkness,  working 
through  his  agents,  represents  God  as  a  revengeful  tyrant, 
declaring  that  he  plunges  into  hell  all  those  who  do  not 
please  him,  and  causes  them  ever  to  feel  his  wrath;  and 
that  while  they  suffer  unutterable  anguish,  and  writhe  in 
the  eternal  flames,  fheir  Creator  looks  down  upon  them  with 
satisfaction. 

Thus  the  arch-fiend  clothes  with  his  own  attributes  the 
Creator  and  Benefactor  of  mankind.  Cruelty  is  Satanic 
God  is  love;  and  all  that  he  created  was  pure,  holy,  and 
lovely,  until  sin  was  brought  in  by  the  first  great  rebel. 
Satan  himself  is  the  enemy  who  tempts  man  to  sin,  and 
then  destroys  him  if  he  can:  and  when  he  has  made  sure 
of  his  victim,  then  he  exults  in  the  ruin  he  has  wrought. 
If  permitted,  he  would  sweep  the  entire  race  into  his  net. 
Were  it  not  for  the  interposition  of  divine  power,  not  one 
son  or  daughter  of  Adam  would  escape. 

He  is  seeking  to  overcome  men  to-day,  as  he  overcame 
our  first  parents,  by  shaking  their  confidence  in  their  Creator, 
and  leading  them  to  doubt  the  wisdom  of  his  government 
and  the  justice  of  his  laws.  Satan  and  his  emissaries  rep- 
resent God  as  even  worse  than  themselves,  in  order  to  justify 
their  own  malignity  and  rebellion.  The  great  deceiver 
endeavors  to  shift  his  own  horrible  cruelty  of  character 
upon  our  heavenly  Father,  that  he  may  cause  himself  to  ap- 

» Gen.  3:24. 


THE  FIRST  ORE  A  T  DECEPTION.  535 

pear  as  one  greatly  wronged  by  his  expulsion  from  Heaven 
because  he  would  not  submit  to  so  unjust  a  governor.  He 
presents  before  the  world  the  liberty  which  they  may  enjoy 
under  his  mild  sway,  in  contrast  with  the  bondage  imposed 
by  the  stern  decrees  of  Jehovah.  Thus  he  succeeds  in  luring 
souls  away  from  their  allegiance  to  God. 

How  repugnant  to  every  emotion  of  love  and  mercy,  and 
even  to  our  sense  of  justice,  is  the  doctrine  that  the  wicked 
dead  are  tormented  with  fire  and  brimstone  in  an  eternally 
burning  hell;  that  for  the  sins  of  a  brief,  earthly  life  they 
are  to  suffer  torture  as  long  as  God  shall  live.  Yet  this 
doctrine  has  been  widely  taught,  and  is  still  embodied  in 
many  of  the  creeds  of  Christendom.  Said  a  learned  doctor 
of  divinity:  "The  sight  of  hell-torments  will  exalt  the  hap- 
piness of  the  saints  forever.  When  they  see  others  who  are 
of  the  same  nature  and  born  under  the  same  circumstances, 
plunged  in  such  misery,  and  they  so  distinguished,  it  will 
make  them  sensible  of  how  happy  they  are."  Another  used 
these  words:  "While  the  decree  of  reprobation  is  eternally 
executing  on  the  vessels  of  wrath,  the  smoke  of  their  tor- 
ment will  be  eternally  ascending  in  view  of  the  vessels  of 
mercy,  who,  instead  of  taking  the  part  of  these  miserable 
objects,  will  say,  Amen,  Alleluia!  praise  ye  the  Lord!" 

Where,  in  the  pages  of  God's  Word,  is  such  teaching  to  be 
found?  Will  the  redeemed  in  Heaven  be  lost  to  all  emo- 
tions of  pity  and  compassion,  and  even  to  feelings  of  common 
humanity?  Are  these  to  be  exchanged  for  the  indifference 
of  the  stoic,  or  the  cruelty  of  the  savage? — No,  no;  such  is 
not  the  teaching  of  the  Book  of  God.  Those  who  present 
the  views  expressed  in  the  quotations  given  above  may  be 
learned  and  even  honest  men;  but  they  are  deluded  by  the 
sophistry  of  Satan.  He  leads  them  to  misconstrue  strong 
expressions  of  Scripture,  giving  to  the  language  the  coloring 
of  bitterness  and  malignity  which  pertains  to  himself,  but 
not  to  our  Creator.  "  As  I  live,  saith  the  Lord  God,  I  have 
no  pleasure  in  the  death  of  the  wicked;  but  that  the  wicked 


536  Tin:   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


turn  from  his  way  and  live;  turn  ye,  turn  ye  from  your 
evil  ways;  for  why  will  ye  die?" 

What  would  be  gained  to  God  should  we  admit  that  he 
delights  in  witnessing  unceasing  tortures;  that  he  is  regaled 
with  the  groans  and  shrieks  and  imprecations  of  the  suf- 
fering creatures  whom  he  holds  in  the  flames  of  hell  ?  Can 
these  horrid  sounds  be  music  in  the  ear  of  Infinite  Love  ? 
It  is  urged  that  the  infliction  of  endless  misery  upon  the 
wicked  would  show  God's  hatred  of  sin  as  an  evil  which  is 
ruinous  to  the  peace  and  order  of  the  universe.  Oh,  dread- 
ful blasphemy!  As  if  God's  hatred  of  sin  is  the  reason  why 
he  perpetuates  sin.  For,  according  to  the  teachings  of  these 
theologians,  continued  torture  without  hope  of  mercy  mad- 
dens its  wretched  victims,  and  as  they  pour  out  their  rage 
in  curses  and  blasphemy,  they  are  forever  augmenting  their 
load  of  guilt.  God's  glory  is  not  enhanced  by  thus  per- 
petuating continually  increasing  sin  through  ceaseless  ages. 

It  is  beyond  the  power  of  the  human  mind  to  estimate 
the  evil  which  has  been  wrought  by  the  heresy  of  eternal 
torment.  The  religion  of  the  Bible,  full  of  love  and  good- 
ness, and  abounding  in  compassion,  is  darkened  by  super- 
stition and  clothed  with  terror.  When  we  consider  in  what 
false  colors  Satan  has  painted  the  character  of  God,  can  we 
wonder  that  our  merciful  Creator  is  feared,  dreaded,  and 
even  hated?  The  appalling  views  of  God  which  have 
spread  over  the  world  from  the  teachings  of  the  pulpit  have 
made  thousands,  yes,  millions,  of  skeptics  and  infidels. 

The  theory  of  eternal  torment  is  one  of  the  false  doctrines 
that  constitute  the  wine  of  the  abominations  of  Babylon, 
of  which  she  makes  all  nations  drink.2  That  ministers  of 
Christ  should  have  accepted  this  heresy  and  proclaimed  it 
from  the  sacred  desk,  is  indeed  a  mystery.  They  received 
it  from  Rome,  as  they  received  the  false  sabbath.  True, 
it  has  been  taught  by  great  and  good  men;  but  the  light 
on  this  subject  had  not  come  to  them  as  it  has  come  to  us. 

^ze.  33:11.  3Rev.  14:8;  17:2. 


THE  FIRST  GREAT  DECEPTION.  537 


They  were  responsible  only  for  the  light  which  shone  in 
their  time;  we  are  accountable  for  that  which  shines  in  our 
day.  If  wo  turn  from  the  testimony  of  God's  Word,  and 
accept  false  doctrines  because  our  fathers  taught  them,  we 
fall  under  the  condemnation  pronounced  upon  Babylon; 
we  are  drinking  of  the  wine  of  her  abominations. 

A  large  class  to  whom  the  doctrine  of  eternal  torment  is 
revolting,  are  driven  to  the  opposite  error.  They  see  that 
the  Scriptures  represent  God  as  a  being  of  love  and  com- 
passion, and  they  cannot  believe  that  he  will  consign  his 
creatures  to  the  fires  of  an  eternally  burning  hell.  But, 
holding  that  the  soul  is  naturally  immortal,  they  see  no 
alternative  but  to  conclude  that  all  mankind  will  finally  be 
saved.  Many  regard  the  threatenings  of  the  Bible  as  de- 
signed merely  to  frighten  men  into  obedience,  and  not  to 
be  literally  fulfilled.  Thus  the  sinner  can  live  in  selfish 
pleasure,  disregarding  the  requirements  of  God,  and  yet 
expect  to  be  finally  received  into  his  favor.  Such  a  doc- 
trine, presuming  upon  God's  mercy,  but  ignoring  his  justice, 
pleases  the  carnal  heart,  and  emboldens  the  wicked  in  their 
iniquity. 

To  show  how  believers  in  universal  salvation  wrest  the 
Scriptures  to  sustain  their  soul-destroying  dogmas,  it  is 
needful  only  to  cite  their  own  utterances.  At  the  funeral 
of  an  irreligious  young  man,  who  had  been  killed  instantly 
by  an  accident,  a  Universalist  minister  selected  as  his  text 
the  Scripture  statement  concerning  David,  "He  was  com- 
forted concerning  Amnon,  seeing  he  was  dead." l 

"  I  am  frequently  asked,"  said  the  speaker,  "  what  will  be 
the  fate  of  those  who  leave  the  world  in  sin,  die,  perhaps, 
in  a  state  of  inebriation,  die  with  the  scarlet  stains  of  crime 
unwashed  from  their  robes,  or  die  as  this  young  man  died, 
having  never  made  a  profession  or  enjoyed  an  experience 
of  religion.  We  are  content  with  the  Scriptures;  their 
answer  shall  solve  the  awful  problem.  Aiimon.  was  exceed- 

1 2  Sam.  13  : 39. 


538  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


ingly  sinful;  he  was  unrepentant,  he  was  made  drunk,  and 
while  drunk  was  killed.  David  was  a  prophet  of  God ;  he 
must  have  known  whether  it  would  be  ill  or  well  for  Amnon 
in  the  world  to  come.  What  were  the  expressions  of  his 
heart  ? — '  The  soul  of  King  David  longed  to  go  forth  unto 
Absalom;  for  he  was  comforted  concerning  Amnon,  seeing 
he  was  dead.' 

"  And  what  is  the  inference  to  be  deduced  from  this 
language  ?  Is  it  not  that  endless  suffering  formed  no  part 
of  his  religious  belief? — So  we  conceive;  and  here  we  dis- 
cover a  triumphant  argument  in  support  of  the  more  pleas- 
ing, more  enlightened,  more  benevolent  hypothesis  of  ulti- 
mate universal  purity  and  peace.  He  was  comforted,  seeing 
his  son  was  dead.  And  why  so  ?: — Because  by  the  eye  of 
prophecy  he  could  look  forward  into  the  glorious  future, 
and  see  that  son  far  removed  from  all  temptations,  released 
from  the  bondage  and  purified  from  the  corruptions  of  sin, 
and  after  being  made  sufficiently  holy  and  enlightened, 
admitted  to  the  assembly  of  ascended  and  rejoicing  spirits. 
His  only  comfort  was,  that  in  being  removed  from  the 
present  state  of  sin  and  suffering,  his  beloved  son  had  gone 
where  the  loftiest  breathings  of  the  Holy  Spirit  would  be 
shed  upon  his  darkened  soul;  where  his  mind  would  be 
unfolded  to  the  wisdom  of  Heaven  and  the  sweet  raptures 
of  immortal  love,  and  thus  prepared  with  a  sanctified  nature 
to  enjoy  the  rest  and  society  of  the  heavenly  inheritance. 

"In  these  thoughts  we  would  be  understood  to  believe 
that  the  salvation  of  Heaven  depends  upon  nothing  which 
we  can  do  in  this  life;  neither  upon  a  present  change  of 
heart,  nor  upon  present  belief,  or  a  present  profession  of 
religion." 

Thus  does  the  professed  minister  of  Christ  reiterate  the 
falsehood  uttered  by  the  serpent  in  Eden, — "  Ye  shall  not 
surely  die."  "In  the  day  ye  eat  thereof,  then  your  eyes 
shall  be  opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as  gods."  Ho  declares  thai 
the  vilest  of  sinners, — the  murderer,  the  thief,  and  the  adul- 


THE  FIRST  GREAT  DECEPTION.  539 

terer, — will  after  death  be  prepared  to  enter  into  immortal 
bliss. 

And  from  what  does  this  perverter  of  the  Scriptures  draw 
his  conclusions? — From  a  single  sentence  expressing  David's 
submission  to  the  dispensation  of  Providence.  His  soul 
"longed  to  go  forth  unto  Absalom;  for  he  was  comforted 
concerning  Amnon,  seeing  he  was  dead."  The  poignancy 
of  his  grief  having  been  softened  by  time,  his  thoughts 
turned  from  the  dead  to  the  living  son,  self-banished  through 
fear  of  the  just  punishment  of  his  crime.  And  this  is  the 
evidence  that  the  incestuous,  drunken  Amnon  was  at  death 
immediately  transported  to  the  abodes  of  bliss,  there  to  be 
purified  and  prepared  for  the  companionship  of  sinless 
angels!  A  pleasing  fable  indeed,  well  suited  to  gratify  the 
carnal  heart!  This  is  Satan's  own  doctrine,  and  it  does  his 
work  effectually.  Should  we  be  surprised  that,  with  such 
instruction,  wickedness  abounds  ? 

The  course  pursued  by  this  one  false  teacher  illustrates 
that  of  many  others.  A  few  words  of  Scripture  are  sep- 
arated from  the  context,  which  would,  in  many  cases,  show 
their  meaning  to  be  exactly  opposite  to  the  interpretation 
put  upon  them;  and  such  disjointed  passages  are  perverted 
and  used  in  proof  of  doctrines  that  have  no  foundation  in 
the  Word  of  God.  The  testimonv  cited  as  evidence  that  the 
drunken  Amnon  is  in  Heaven,  is  a  mere  inference,  directly 
contradicted  by  the  plain  and  positive  statement  of  the 
Scriptures,  that  110  drunkard  shall  inherit  the  kingdom  of 
God.1  It  is  thus  that  doubters,  unbelievers,  and  skeptics 
turn  the  truth  into  a  lie.  And  multitudes  have  been  de- 
ceived by  their  sophistry,  and  rocked  to  sleep  in  the  cradle 
of  carnal  security. 

If  it  were  true  that  the  souls  of  all  men  passed  directly 
to  Heaven  at  the  hour  of  dissolution,  then  we  might  well 
covet  death  rather  than  life.  Many  have  been  led  by  this 
belief  to  put  an  end  to  their  existence.  When  overwhelmed 
with  trouble,  perplexity,  and  disappointment,  it  seems  an 

i  1  Cor.  6  :  10. 


540  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


easy  thing  to  break  the  brittle  thread  of  life,  and  soar  away 
into  the  bliss  of  the  eternal  world. 

God  has  given  in  his  Word  decisive  evidence  that  he  will 
punish  the  transgressors  of  his  law.  Those  who  flatter 
themselves  that  he  is  too  merciful  to  execute  justice  upon 
the  sinner,  have  only  to  look  to  the  cross  of  Calvary.  The 
death  of  the  spotless  Son  of  God  testifies  that  "the  wages  of 
sin  is  death,"  that  every  violation  of  God's  law  must  receive 
its  just  retribution.  Christ  the  sinless  became  sin  for  man. 
He  bore  the  guilt  of  transgression,  and  the  hiding  of  his 
Father's  face,  until  his  heart  was  broken  and  his  life  crushed 
out.  All  this  sacrifice  was  made  that  sinners  might  be  re- 
deemed. In  no  other  way  could  man  be  freed  from  the 
penalty  of  sin.  And  every  soul  that  refuses  to  become  a 
partaker  of  the  atonement  provided  at  such  a  cost,  must 
bear,  in  his  own  person,  the  guilt  and  punishment  of  trans- 
gression. 

Let  us  consider  what  the  Bible  teaches  further  concerning 
the  ungodly  and  unrepentant,  whom  the  Universalist  places 
in  Heaven  as  holy,  happy  angels.  * 

"  I  will  give  unto  him  that  is  athirst  of  the  fountain  of  the 
water  of  life  freely."1  This  promise  is  only  to  those  that 
thirst.  None  but  those  who  feel  their  need  of  the  water  of 
life,  and  seek  it  at  the  loss  of  all  things  else,  will  be  supplied. 
"He  that  overcometh  shall  inherit  all  things;  and  I  will  be 
his  God,  and  he  shall  be  my  son."1  Here,  also,  conditions 
are  specified.  In  order  to  inherit  all  things,  we  must  resist 
and  overcome  sin. 

The  Lord  declares  by  the  prophet  Isaiah,  "Say  ye  1<>  the 
righteous,  that  it  shall  be  well  with  him."  u  \Voe  unto  the 
wicked!  it  shall  be  ill  with  him;  for  the  reward  of  his  hands 
shall  be  given  him." 2  "  Though  a  sinner  do  evil  a  hundred 
times,"  says  the  wise  man,  "and  his  days  ho  prolonged,  yet. 
surely  I  know  that  it  shall  he  well  with  them  that  fear  God, 
which  fear  before  him;  but  it  shall  not  be  well  with  the 

iRev.  21:6,  7.  alsa.  3  : 10,  11. 


THE  FIRST  GREA  T  DECEPTION'.  541 


wicked."1  And  Paul  testifies  that  the  sinner  is  treasuring 
up  unto  himself  "  wrath  against  the  day  of  wrath  and  reve- 
lation of  the  righteous  judgment  of  God,  who  will  render 
to  every  man  according  to  his  deeds;"  "tribulation  and 
anguish  upon  every  soul  of  man  that  doeth  evil." 2 

"  No  fornicator,  nor  unclean  person,  nor  covetous  man, 
which  is  an  idolater,  hath  any  inheritance  in  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  and  God."3  "Follow  peace  with  all  men,  and 
holiness,  without  which  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord."* 
"Blessed  are  they  that  do  his  commandments,  that  they 
may  have  right  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may  enter  in  through 
the  gates  into,  the  city.  For  without  are  dogs,  and  sorcerers, 
and  whoremongers,  and  murderers,  and  idolaters,  and  who- 
soever loveth  and  maketh  a  lie." 5 

God  has  given  to  men  a  declaration  of  his  character,  and 
of  his  method  of  dealing  with  sin.  "The  Lord  God,  mer- 
ciful and  gracious,  long-suffering,  and  abundant  in  goodness 
and  truth,  keeping  mercy  for  thousands,  forgiving  iniquity 
and  transgression  and  sin,  and  that  will  by  no  means  clear 
the  guilty."6  "All  the  wicked  will  he  destroy."  "The 
transgressors  shall  be  destroyed  together;  the  end  of  the 
wicked  shall  be  cut  off." 7  The  power  and  .uthority  of  the 
divine  government  will  be  employed  to  put  down  rebellion; 
yet  all  the  manifestations  of  retributive  justice  will  be  per- 
fectly consistent  with  the  character  of  God  as  a  merciful, 
long-suffering,  benevolent  being. 

God  does  not  force  the  will  or  judgment  of  any.  He  takes 
no  pleasure  in  a  slavish  obedience.  He  desires  that  the 
creatures  of  his  hands  shall  love  him  because  he  is  worthy 
of  love.  He  would  have  them  obey  him  because  they  have 
an  intelligent  appreciation  of  his  wisdom,  justice,  and  benev- 
olence. And  all  who  have  a  just  conception  of  these  qual- 
ities will  love  him  because  they  are  drawn  toward  him  in 
admiration  of  his  attributes. 

i  Eccl.  8  : 12,  13.     2  Rom.  2  :  5,  6,  9.     3  Eph.  5  : 5,  Revised  Version. 
*  Heb.  12  :  14.         5  Rev.  22  : 14,  15.      6  Ex.  34  : 6,  7. 

7  Ps.  145  : 20;  37  : 38. 
39 


542  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  principles  of  kindness,  mercy,  and  love,  taught  and 
exemplified  by  our  Saviour,  are  a  transcript  of  the  will  and 
character  of  God.  Christ  declared  that  he  taught  nothing 
except  that  which  he  had  received  from  his  Father.  The 
principles  of  the  divine  government  are  in  perfect  harmony 
with  the  Saviour's  precept,  "Love  your  enemies."  God  exe- 
cutes justice  upon  the  wicked,  for  the  good  of  the  universe, 
and  even  for  the  good  of  those  upon  whom  his  judgments 
are  visited.  He  would  make  them  happy  if  he  could  do  so 
in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  his  government  and  the 
justice  of  his  character.  He  surrounds  them  with  the  tokens 
of  his  love,  he  grants  them  a  knowledge  of  his  law,  and 
follows  them  with  the  offers  of  his  mercy;  but  they  despise 
his  love,  make  void  his  law,  and  reject  his  mercy.  While 
constantly  receiving  his  gifts,  they  dishonor  the  Giver;  they 
hate  God  because  they  know  that  he  abhors  their  sins.  The 
Lord  bears  long  with  their  perversity;  but  the  decisive  hour 
will  come  at  last,  when  their  destiny  is  to  be  decided.  Will 
he  then  chain  these  rebels  to  his  side?  Will  he  force  them 
to  do  his  will  ? 

Those  who  have  chosen  Satan  as  their  leader,  and  have 
been  controlled  by  his  power,  are  not  prepared  to  enter  the 
presence  of  God.  Pride,  deception,  licentiousness,  cruelty, 
have  become  fixed  in  their  characters.  Can  they  enter 
Heaven,  to  dwell  forever  with  those  whom  they  despised 
and  hated  on  earth?  Truth  will  never  be  agreeable  to  a 
liar;  meekness  will  not  satisfy  self-esteem  and  pride;  purity 
is  not  acceptable  to  the  corrupt;  disinterested  love  does  not 
appear  attractive  to  the  selfish.  What  source  of  enjoyment 
could  Heaven  offer  to  those  who  are  wholly  absorbed  in 
earthly  and  selfish  interests? 

Could  those  whose  lives  have  been  spent  in  rebellion 
against  God  be  suddenly  transported  to  Heaven,  and  witness 
the  high,  the  holy  state  of  perfection  that  ever  exists  there, — 
every  soul  filled  with  love;  every  countenance  beaming  with 
joy;  enrapturing  music  in  melodious  strains  rising  in  honor 


THE  FIRST  GREAT  DECEPTION.  543 

of  God  and  the  Lamb;  and  ceaseless  streams  of  light  flowing 
upon  the  redeemed  from  the  face  of  Him  who  sitteth  upon 
the  throne, — could  those  whose  hearts  are  filled  with  hatred 
of  God,  of  truth  and  holiness,  mingle  with  the  heavenly 
throng  and  join  their  songs  of  praise?  Could  they  endure 
the  glory  of  God  and  the  Lamb? — No,  no;  years  of  proba- 
tion were  granted  them,  that  they  might  form  characters 
for  Heaven;  but  they  have  never  trained  the  mind  to  love 
purity;  they  have  never  learned  the  language  of  Heaven, 
and  now  it  is  too  late.  A  life  of  rebellion  against  God.  has 
unfitted  them  for  Heaven.  Its  purity,  holiness,  and  peace 
would  be  torture  to  them;  the  glory  of  God  would  be  a 
consuming  fire.  They  would  long  to  flee  from  that  holy 
place.  They  would  welcome  destruction,  that  they  might 
be  hidden  from  the  face  of  Him  who  died  to  redeem  them. 
The  destiny  of  the  wicked  is  fixed  by  their  own  choice. 
Their  exclusion  from  Heaven  is  voluntary  with  themselves, 
and  just  and  merciful  on  the  part  of  God. 

Like  the  waters  of  the  flood,  the  fires  of  the  great  day 
declare  God's  verdict  that  the  wicked  are  incurable.  They 
have  no  disposition  to  submit  to  divine  authority.  Their 
will  has  been  exercised  in  revolt;  and  when  life  is  ended, 
it  is  too  late  to  turn  the  current  of  their  thoughts  in  the 
opposite  direction, — too  late  to  turn  from  transgression  to 
obedience,  from  hatred  to  love. 

In  sparing  the  life  of  Cain  the  murderer,  God  gave  the 
world  an  example  of  what  would  be  the  result  of  permitting 
the  sinner  to  live,  to  continue  a  course  of  unbridled  iniquity. 
Through  the  influence  of  Cain's  teaching  and  example, 
multitudes  of  his  descendants  were  led  into  sin,  until  "  the 
wickedness  of  man  was  great  in  the  earth,  and  every  im- 
agination of  the  thoughts  of  his  heart  was  only  evil  con- 
tinually." "  The  earth  also  was  corrupt  before  God,  and  the 
earth  was  filled  with  violence." * 

In  mercy  to  the  world,  God  blotted  out  its  wicked  in- 
habitants in  Noah's  time.  In  mercy  he  destroyed  the  cor- 

-Gen.  610,  11. 


544  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

rupt  dwellers  in  Sodom.  Through  the  deceptive  power  of 
Satan,  the  workers  of  iniquity  obtain  sympathy  and  ad- 
miration, and  are  thus  constantly  leading  others  to  rebellion. 
It  was  so  in  Cain's  and  in  Noah's  day,  and  in  the  time  of 
Abraham  and  Lot;  it  is  so  in  our  time.  It  is  in  mercy 
to  the  universe  that  God  will  finally  destroy  the  rejecters 
of  his  grace. 

"The  wages  of  sin  is  death;  but  the  gift  of  God  is  eternal 
life  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."1  While  life  is  the  in- 
heritance of  the  righteous,  death  is  the  portion  of  the  wicked. 
Moses  declared  to  Israel,  "  I  have  set  before  thee  fiu&  day 
life  and  good,  and  death  and  evil." 2  The  death  referred  to 
in  these  scriptures  is  not  that  pronounced  upon  Adam,  for 
all  mankind  suffer  the  penalty  of  his  transgression.  It  is 
the  "second  death"  that  is  placed  in  contrast  with  ever- 
lasting life. 

In  consequence  of  Adam's  sin,  death  passed  upon  the 
whole  human  race.  All  alike  go  down  into  the  grave. 
And  through  the  provisions  of  the  plan  of  salvation,  all 
are  to  be  brought  forth  from  their  graves.  "There  shall 
be  a  resurrection  of  the  dead,  both  of  the  just  and  unjust; "; 
"  for  as  in  Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ  shall  all  be  made 
alive."4  But  a  distinction  is  made  between  the  two  classes 
that  are  brought  forth.  "  All  that  are  in  the  graves  shall 
hear  his  voice,  and  shall  come  forth;  they  that  have  done 
good,  unto  the  resurrection  of  life;  and  they  that  have  done 
evil,  unto  the  resurrection  of  damnation." 5  They  who  have 
been  "accounted  worthy"  of  the  resurrection  of  life  are 
"blessed  and  holy."  "On  such  the  second  death  hath  no 
power."6  But  those  who  have  not,  through  repentance  and 
faith,  secured  pardon,  must  receive  the  penalty  of  trans- 
gression,— "the  wages  of  sin."  They  suffer  punishment 
varying  in  duration  and  intensity,  "according  to  their 
works,"  bat  finally  ending  in  the  second  death.  Since  it  is 

1  Rom.  O  :  23.  *  Dcut.  30  :  1 5.  3  A «-ts  '24  : 15. 

«  I  Cor.  15  :  22.  &  John  5  :  2$,  '29.  6  Rev.  20  :  6. 


TTIE  FIRST  GREAT  &&CEPT1ON.  545 

impossible  for  God,  consistently  with  his  justice  and  mercy, 
to  save  the  sinner  in  his  sins,  he  deprives  him  of  the  ex- 
istence which  his  transgressions  have  forfeited,  and  of  which 
he  has  proved  himself  unworthy.  Says  an  inspired  writer, 
"  Yet  a  little  while,  and  the  wricked  shall  not  be;  yea,  thou 
shalt  diligently  consider  his  place,  and  it  shall  not  be/' 
And  another  declares,  "They  shall  be  as  though  they  had 
not  been."  l  Covered  with  infamy,  they  sink  into  hopeless, 
eternal  oblivion. 

Thus  will  be  made  an  end  of  sin,  with  all  the  woe  and 
ruin  which  have  resulted  from  it.  Says  the  psalmist:  "  Thou 
hast  destroyed  the  wicked,  thou  hast  put  out  their  name 
forever  and  ever.  O  thou  enemy,  destructions  are  come  to 
a  perpetual  end." *  John,  in  the  Revelation,  looking  for- 
ward to  the  eternal  state,  hears  a  universal  anthem  of  praise, 
undisturbed  by  one  note  of  discord.  Every  creature  in 
Heaven  and  earth  was  heard  ascribing  glory  to  God.3  There 
will  then  be  no  lost  souls  to  blaspheme  God,  as  they  writhe 
in  never-ending  torment;  no  wretched  beings  in  hell  will 
mingle  their  shrieks  with  the  songs  of  the  saved. 

Upon  the  fundamental  error  of  natural  immortality  rests 
the  doctrine  of  consciousness  in  death,  a  doctrine,  like  eternal 
torment,  opposed  to  the  teachings  of  the  Scriptures,  to  the 
dictates  of  reason,  and  to  our  feelings  of  humanity.  Ac- 
cording to  the  popular  belief,  the  redeemed  in  Heaven  are 
acquainted  with  all  that  takes  place  on  the  earth,  and  es- 
pecially with  the  lives  of  the  friends  whom  they  have  left 
behind.  But  how  could  it  be  a  source  of  happiness  to  the 
dead  to  know  the  troubles  of  the  living,  to  witness  the  sins 
committed  by  their  own  loved  ones,  and  to  see  them  endur- 
ing all  the  sorrows,  disappointments,  and  anguish  of  life? 
How  much  of  Heaven's  bliss  would  be  enjoyed  by  those 
who  were  hovering  over  their  friends  on  earth  ?  And  how 
utterly  revolting  is  the  belief  that  as  soon  as  the  breath 
leaves  the  body,  the'  soul  of  the  impenitent  is  consigned  to 

*Ps.  37  : 10  ;  Obad.  16.         2  Ps.  9  :  5,  6.         3  Rev.  5  : 13. 


546  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  ihmu'.s  of  hell!  To  what  depths  of  anguish  must  those 
be  plunged  who  see  their  friends  passing  to  the  grave  un- 
prepared, to  enter  upon  an  eternity  of  woe  and  sin !  Many 
have  been  driven  to  insanity  by  this  harrowing  thought. 

What  say  the  Scriptures  concerning  these  things?  David 
declares  that  man  is  not  conscious  in  death.  "  His  breath 
goeth  forth,  he  returneth  to  his  earth;  in  that  very  day  his 
thoughts  perish."1  Solomon  bears  the  same  testimony: 
"The  living  know  that  they  shall  die;  but  the  dead  know 
not  anything."  "Their  love,  and  their  hatred,  and  their 
envy,  is  now  perished;  neither  have  they  any  more  a  portion 
forever  in  anything  that  is  done  under  the  sun."  "  There 
is  no  work,  nor  device,  nor  knowledge,  nor  wisdom,  in  the 
grave,  whither  thou  goest." 2 

When,  in  answer  to  his  prayer,  Hezekiah's  life  was  pro- 
longed fifteen  years,  the  grateful  king  rendered  to  God  a 
tribute  of  praise  for  his  great  mercy.  In  this  song  he  tells 
the  reason  why  he  thus  rejoices:  "The  grave  cannot  praise 
thee,  death  cannot  celebrate  thee;  they  that  go  down  into 
the  pit  cannot  hope  for  thy  truth.  The  living,  the  living, 
he  shall  praise  thee,  as  I  do  this  day." a  Popular  theology 
represents  the  righteous  dead  as  in  Heaven,  entered  into 
bliss,  and.  praising  God  with  an  immortal  tongue;  but 
Hezekiah  could  see  no  such  glorious  prospect  in  death. 
With  his  words  Agrees  the  testimony  of  the  psalmist:  "In 
death  there  is  no  remembrance  of  thee;  in  the  grave  who 
shall  give  thee  thanks?"  "The  dead  praise  not  the  Lord, 
neither  any  that  go  down  into  silence."  * 

Peter,  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  declared  that  the  patriardh 
David  "  is  both  dead  and  buried,  and  his  sepulcher  is  with 
us  unto  this  day."  "  For  David  is  not  ascended  into  the 
heavens."3  The  fact  that  David  remains  in  the  grave  until 
the  resurrection,  proves  that  the  righteous  do  not  go  to 
Heaven  at  death.  It  is  only  through  the  resurrection,  and 

> Pa.  146  :  4,          »  Eccl.  9  : 5,  6,  10.          » Isa.  38  : 18,  ia 
«Ps.6-5;  115:17.  »  Acte  2  : 29,  34. 


THE  FIRST  GREAT  DECEPTION.  f>17 


by  virtue  of  the  fact  that  Christ  has  risen,  that  David  can  at 
last  sit  at  the  right  hand  of  God. 

And  said  Paul :  "  If  the  dead  rise  not,  then  is  not  Christ 
raised.  And  if  Christ  be  not  raised,  your  faith  is  vain ;  ye 
are  yet  in  your  sins.  Then  they  also  which  are  fallen  asleep 
in  Christ  are  perished."1  If  for  four  thousand  years  the 
righteous  had  gone  directly  to  Heaven  at  death,  how  could 
Paul  have  said  that  if  there  is  no  resurrection,  "  they  which 
are  fallen  asleep  in  Christ  are  perished  "  ?  No  resurrection 
would  be  necessary. 

The  martyr  Tyndale,  defending  the  doctrine  that  the  dead 
sleep,  declared  to  his  papist  opponent:  "Ye,  in  putting 
them  [departed  souls]  in  Heaven,  hell,  and  purgatory,  de- 
stroy the  argument  wherewith  Christ  and  Paul  prove  the 
resurrection."  "If  the  souls  be  in  Heaven,  tell  me  why 
they  be  not  in  as  good  case  as  the  angels  be  ?  And  then 
what  cause  is  there  of  the  resurrection  ?  " 

It  is  an  undeniable  fact  that  the  hope  of  immortal  bles- 
sedness at  death  has  led  to  widespread  neglect  of  the  Bible 
doctrine  of  the  resurrection.  This  tendency  was  remarked 
by  Dr.  Adam  Clarke,  who,  early  in  the  present  century, 
said:  "  The  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  appears  to  have  been 
thought  of  much  more  consequence  among  the  primitive 
Christians  than  it  is  now!  How  is  this?  The  apostles  were 
continually  insisting  on  it,  and  exciting  the  followers  of  God 
to  diligence,  obedience,  and  cheerfulness  through  it.  And 
their  successors  in  the  present  day  seldom  mention  it!  So 
apostles  preached,  and  so  primitive  Christians  believed;  so 
we  preach,  and  so  our  hearers  believe.  There  is  not  a  doc-, 
trine  in  the  gospel  on  which  more  stress  is  laid;  and  there 
is  not  a  doctrine  in  the  present  system  of  preaching  which 
is  treated  with  more  neglect! " 

This  has  continued  until  the  glorious  truth  of  the  res- 
urrection has  been  almost  wholly  obscured,  and  lost  sight 
of  by  the  Christian  world.    Thus  a  leading  religious  writer, 
ll  Cor.  15:16-18. 


548  T1IK  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


coinmeiiting  on  the  words  of  Paul  in  1  Thess.  4 : 13-18, 
says:  "For  all  practical  purposes  of  comfort  the  doctrine  of 
the  blessed  immortality  of  the  righteous  takes  the  place  for 
us  of  any  doubtful  doctrine  of  the  Lord's  second  coming. 
At  our  death  the  Lord  comes  for  vis.  That  is  what  we  are 
to  wait  and  watch  for.  The  dead  are  already  passed  into 
glory.  They  do  not  wait  for  the  trump  for  their  judgment 
and  blessedness." 

But  when  about  to  leave  his  disciples,  Jesus  did  not  tell 
them  that  they  would  soon  come  to  him.  "  I  go  to  prepare  a 
place  for  you,"  he  said.  "  And  if  I  go  and  prepare  a  place  for 
you,  I  will  come  again,  and  receive  you  unto  myself." ]  And 
Paul  tells  us,  further,  that  "  the  Lord  himself  shall  descend 
from  Heaven  with  a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel, 
and  with  the  trump  of  God;  and  the  dead  in  Christ  shall 
rise  first.  Then  we  which  are  alive  and  remain  shall  be 
caught  up  together  with  them  in  the  clouds,  to  meet  the 
Lord  in  the  air;  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord." 
And  he  adds,  "Comfort  one  another  with  these  words."2 
'How  wide  the  contrast  between  these  words  of  comfort  and 
those  of  the  Universalist  minister  previously  quoted.  The 
latter  consoled  the  bereaved  friends  with  the  assurance,  that, 
however  sinful  the  dead  might  have  been,  when  he  breathed 
out  his  life  here  he  was  to  be  received  among  the  angels. 
Paul  points  his  brethren  to  the  future  coming  of  the  Lord, 
when  the  fetters  of  the  tomb  shall  be  broken,  and  the  "  dead 
in  Christ"  shall  be  raised  to  eternal  life. 

Before  any  can  enter  the  mansions  of  the  blest,  their  cases 
must  be  investigated,  and  their  characters  and  their  deeds 
must  pass  in  review  before  God.  All  are  to  be  judged  ac- 
cording to  the  things  written  in  the  books,  and  to  be  re- 
warded as  their  works  have  been.  This  Judgment  does 
not  take  place  at  death.  Mark  Ihe  words  of  Paul:  "He 
hath  appointed  a  day,  in  the  which  he  will  judge  the  world 
in  righteousness  by  that  man  whom  he  hath  ordained; 

i  John  14  : 2,  3.  2  1  Thess.  4  : 10-18. 


THE  FIRST  GREA  T  DECEPTION.  540 

whereof  he  hath  given  assurance  unto  all  men,  in  that  he 
hath  raised  him  from  the  dead." '  Here  the  apostle  plainly 
stated  that  a  specified  time,  then  future,  had  been  fixed 
upon  for  the  Judgment  of  the  world. 

Jude  refers  to  the  same  period :  "  The  angels  which  kept 
not  their  first  estate,  but  left  their  own  habitation,  he  hath 
reserved  in  everlasting  chains  under  darkness  unto  the 
Judgment  of  the  great  day."  And  again  he  quotes  the 
words  of  Enoch :  "  Behold,  the  Lord  cometh  with  ten  thou- 
sands of  his  saints,  to  execute  judgment  upon  all."2  John 
declares  that  he  "  saw  the  dead,  small  and  great,  stand  before 
God ;  and  the  books  were  opened ; "  "  and  the  dead  were 
judged  out  of  those  things  which  were  written  in  the  books."3 

But  if  the  dead  are  already  enjoying  the  bliss  of  Heaven 
or  writhing  in  the  flames  of  hell,  what  need  of  a  future 
Judgment?  The  teachings  of  God's  Word  on  these  im- 
portant points  are  neither  obscure  nor  contradictory;  they 
may  be  understood  by  common  minds.  But  what  candid 
mind  can  see  either  wisdom  or  justice  in  the  current  theory? 
Will  the  righteous,  after  the  investigation  of  their  cases  at 
the  Judgment,  receive  the  commendation,  "  Well  done,  good 
and  faithful  servant,"  "enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord,"4 
when  they  have  been  dwelling  in  his  presence,  perhaps  for 
long  ages?  Are  the  wicked  summoned  from  the  place  of 
torment  to  receive  the  sentence  from  the  Judge  of  all  the 
earth,  "Depart  from  me,  ye  cursed,  into  everlasting  fire"?* 
Oh,  solemn  mockery!  shameful  impeachment  of  the  wisdom 
and  justice  of  God ! 

The  theory  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul  was  one  of 
those  false  doctrines  that  Rome,  borrowing  from  paganism, 
incorporated  into  the  religion  of  Christendom.  Martin 
Luther  classed  it  with  "  the  numberless  prodigies'  of  the 
Romish  dunghill  of  decretals."  Commenting  on  the  words 
of  Solomon  in  Ecclesiastes,  that  the  dead  know  not  any- 
thing, the  reformer  says :  "  Another  proof  that  the  dead  are 

1  Acts  17  : 31.  .  a  Jude  6,  14,  15.     »  iiev.  20  : 12.     *  Matt.  25 : 21,  41. 


550  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


insensible.  Solomon  thinks  therefore,  that  the  dead  are 
altogether  asleep,  and  think  of  nothing.  They  lie,  not 
reckoning  days  or  years,  but  when  awakened,  will  seem  to 
themselves  to  have  slept  scarcely  a  moment." 

Nowhere  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures  is  found  the  statement 
that  the  righteous  go  to  their  reward  or  the  wicked  to  their 
punishment  at  death.  The  patriarchs  and  prophets  have 
left  no  such  assurance.  Christ  and  his  apostles  have  given 
no  hint  of  it.  The  Bible  clearly  teaches  that  the  dead  do 
not  go  immediately  to  Heaven.  They  are  represented  as 
sleeping  until  the  resurrection.1  In  the  very  day  when  the 
silver  cord  is  loosed  and  the  golden  bowl  broken,2  man's 
thoughts  perish.  They  that  go  down  to  the  grave  are  in 
silence.  They  know  no  more  of  anything  that  is  done  under 
the  sun.8  Blessed  rest  for  the  weary  righteous!  Time,  be 
it  long  or  short,  is  but  a  moment  to  them.  They  sleep,  they 
are  awakened  by  the  trump  of  God  to  a  glorious  immor- 
tality. "  For  the  trumpet  shall  sound,  and  the  dead  shall  be 
raised  incorruptible.  .  .  .  So  when  this  corruptible  shall 
have  put  on  incorruption,  and  this  mortal  shall  have  put 
on  immortality,  then  shall  be  brought  to  pass  the  saying 
that  is  written,  Death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory."*  As 
they  are  called  forth  from  their  deep  slumber,  they  begin 
to  think  just  where  they  ceased.  The  last  sensation  was  the 
pang  of  death,  the  last  thought  that  they  were  falling  be- 
neath the  power  of  the  grave.  When  they  arise  from  the 
tomb,  their  first  glad  thought  will  be  echoed  in  the  tri- 
umphal shout,  "0  death,  where  is  thy  sting?  O  grave, 
where  is  thy  victory?" 4 

»1  Thess.  4:14;  Job  14:10-12.        'Ecel.  12:6.        » Job  14:21. 
«1  Cor.  15:52-55. 


CHAPTER    XXXIV. 


SPIRITUALISM. 

THE  ministration  of  holy  angels,  as  presented  in  the 
Scriptures,  is  a  truth  most  comforting  and  precious  to  every 
follower  of  Christ.  But  the  Bible  teaching  upon  this  point 
has  been  obscured  and  perverted  by  the  errors  of  popular 
theology.  The  doctrine  of  natural  immortality,  first  bor- 
rowed from  the  pagan  philosophy,  and  in  the  darkness  of 
the  great  apostasy  incorporated  into  the  Christian  faith, 
has  supplanted  the  truth,  so  plainly  taught  in  Scripture, 
that  "  the  dead  know  not  anything."  Multitudes  have  come 
to  believe  that  it  is  the  spirits  of  the  dead  who  are  the 
"ministering  spirits  sent  forth  to  minister  for  them  who 
shall  be  heirs  of  salvation."  And  this  notwithstanding  the 
testimony  of  Scripture  to  the  existence  of  heavenly  angels, 
and  their  connection  with  the  history  of  man,  before  the 
death  of  a  human  being. 

The  doctrine  of  man's  consciousness  in  death,  especially 
the  belief  that  the  spirits  of  the  dead  return  to  minister  to 
the  living,  has  prepared  the  way  for  modern  Spiritualism. 
If  the  dead  are  admitted  to  the  presence  of  God  and  holy 
angels,  and  privileged  with  knowledge  far  exceeding  what 
they  before  possessed,  why  should  they  not  return  to  the 
earth  to  enlighten  and  instruct  the  living  ?  If,  as  taught 
by  popular  theologians,  the  spirits  of  the  dead  are  hovering 
about  their  friends  on  earth,  why  should  they  not  be  per- 
mitted to  communicate  with  them,  to  warn  them  against 
evil,  or  to  comfort  them  in  sorrow  ?  How  can  those  who 
believe  in  man's  consciousness  in  death  reject  what  comes 
to  them  as  divine  light  communicated  by  glorified  spirits? 

(561) 


552  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Here  is  a  channel  regarded  as  sacred,  through  which  Satan 
works  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  purposes.  The  fallen 
angels  who  do  his  bidding  appear  as  messengers  from  the 
spirit  wrorld.  While  professing  to  b  'ing  the  living  into  com- 
munication with  the  dead,  the  prince  of  evil  exercises  his 
bewitching  influence  upon  their  minds. 

He  has  power  to  bring  before  men  the  appearance  of  their 
departed  friends.  The  counterfeit  is  perfect;  the  familiar 
look,  the  words,  the  tone,  are  reproduced  with  marvelous 
distinctness.  Many  are  comforted  with  the  assurance  that 
their  loved  ones  are  enjoying  the  bliss  of  Heaven;  and 
without  suspicion  of  danger,  they  give  ear  to  "  seducing 
spirits,  and  doctrines  of  devils." 

When  they  have  been  led  to  believe  that  the  dead  actually 
return  to  communicate  with  them,  Satan  causes  those  to 
appear  who  went  into  the  grave  unprepared.  They  claim 
to  be  happy  in  Heaven,  and  even  to  occupy  exalted  posi- 
tions there;  and  thus  the  error  is  widely  taught,  that  no 
difference  is  made  between  the  righteous  and  the  wicked. 
The  pretended  visitants  from  the  world  of  spirits  sometimes 
utter  cautions  and  warnings  which  prove  to  be  correct. 
Then,  as  confidence  is  gained,  they  present  doctrines  that 
directly  undermine  faith  in  the  Scriptures.  With  an  ap- 
pearance of  deep  interest  in  the  well-being  of  their  friends 
on  earth,  they  insinuate  the  most  dangerous  errors.  The 
fact  that  they  state  some  truths,  and  are  able  at  times  to 
foretell  future  events,  gives  to  their  statements  an  appear- 
ance of  reliability;  and  their  false  teachings  are  accepted 
by  the  multitudes  as  readily,  and  believed  as  implicitly,  as 
if  they  were  the  most  sacred  truths  of  the  Bible.  The  law 
of  ( }od  is  set  aside,  the  Spirit  of  grace  despised,  the  blood 
of  the  covenant  counted  an  unholy  tiling.  The  spirits  deny 
the  divinity  of  (1hrist,  and  place  even  the  <'ivat<»r  on  a  level 
with  themselves.  Thus  under  a  new  disguise  the  great 
rebel  still  carries  forward  his  warfare  against  ( Jod,  begun  in 
Heaven,  and  for  nearly  six  thousand  years  continued  upon 
the  earth. 


SPIRITUALISM.  553 

Many  endeavor  to  account  for  spiritual  manifestations  by 
attributing  them  wholly  to  fraud  and  sleight  of  hand  on 
the  part  of  the  medium.  But  while  it  is  true  that  the  re- 
sults of  trickery  have  often  been  palmed  off  as  genuine 
manifestations,  there  have  been,  also,  marked  exhibitions 
of  supernatural  power.  The  mysterious  rapping,  with  which 
modern  Spiritualism  began  was  not  the  result  of  human 
trickery  or  cunning,  but  was  the  direct  work  of  evil  angels, 
who  thus  introduced  one  of  the  most  successful  of  soul- 
destroying  delusions.  Many  will  be  ensnared  through  the 
belief  that  Spiritualism  is  a  merely  human  imposture; 
when  brought  face  to  face  with  manifestations  which  they 
cannot  but  regard  as  supernatural,  they  will  be  deceived, 
and  will  be  led  to  accept  them  as  the  great  power  of  God. 

These  persons  overlook  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures 
concerning  the  wonders  wrought  by  Satan  and  his  agents. 
It  was  by  Satanic  aid  that  Pharaoh's  magicians  were  en- 
abled to  counterfeit  the  work  of  God.  Paul  testifies  that 
before  the  second  advent  of  Christ  there  will  be  similar 
manifestations  of  Satanic  power.  The  coming  of  the  Lord 
is  to  be  preceded  by  "  the  working  of  Satan  with  all  power 
and  signs  and  lying  wonders,  and  with  all  deceivableness 
of  unrighteousness."1  And  the  apostle  John,  describing 
the  miracle-working  power  that  will  be  manifested  in  the 
last  days,  declares:  "  He  doeth  great  wonders,  so  that  he 
maketh  fire  come  down  from  heaven  on  the  earth  in  the 
sight  of  men,  and  deceiveth  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth 
by  the  means  of  those  miracles  which  he  had  power  to  do." a 
No  mere  impostures  are  here  foretold.  Men  are  deceived 
by  the  miracles  which  Satan's  agents  have  power  to  do,  not 
which  they  pretend  to  do. 

The  prince  of  darkness,  who  has  so  long  bent  the  powers 
of  his  master-mind  to  the  work  of  deception,  skillfully  adapts 
his  temptations  to  men  of  all  classes  and  conditions.  To  per- 
sons of  culture  and  refinement  he  presents  Spiritualism  in 

12  Thess.  2 : 9,  10.  2  Rev.  13 : 13,  14. 


554  THE  GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 

its  more  refined  and  intellectual  aspects,  and  thus  succeeds 
in  drawing  many  into  his  snare.  The  wisdom  which  Spir- 
itualism imparts  is  that  described  by  the  apostle  James, 
which  "  descendeth  not  from  above,  but  is  earthly,  sensual, 
devilish." l  This,  however,  the  great  deceiver  conceals,  when 
concealment  will  best  suit  his  purpose.  He  who  could  ap- 
pear clothed  writh  the  brightness  of  the  heavenly  seraphs 
before  Christ  in  the  wilderness  of  temptation,  comes  to  men 
in  the  most  attractive  manner,  as  an  angel  of  light.  He 
appeals  to  the  reason  by  the  presentation  of  elevating  themes, 
he  delights  the  fancy  with  enrapturing  scenes,  and  he  en- 
lists the  affections  by  his  eloquent  portrayals  of  love  and 
charity.  He  excites  the  imagination  to  lofty  flights,  leading 
men  to  take  so  great  pride  in  their  own  wisdom  that  in 
their  hearts  they  despise  the  Eternal  One.  That  mighty 
being  who  could  take  the  world's  Redeemer  to  an  exceed- 
ingly high  mountain,  and  bring  before  him  all  the  king- 
doms of  the  earth  and  the  glory  of  them,  will  present  his 
temptations  to  men  in  a  manner  to  pervert  the  senses  of 
all  who  are  not  shielded  by  divine  power. 

Satan  beguiles  men  now  as  he  beguiled  Eve  in  Eden,  by 
flattery,  by  kindling  a  desire  to  obtain  forbidden  knowledge, 
by  exciting  ambition  for  self-exaltation.  It  was  cherishing 
these  evils  that  caused  his  fall,  and  through  them  he  aims 
to  compass  the  ruin  of  men.  "Ye  shall  be  as  gods,"  he 
declares,  "  knowing  good  and  evil." 2  Spiritualism  teaches 
"  that  man  is  the  creature  of  progression ;  that  it  is  his  des- 
tiny from  his  birth  to  progress,  even  to. eternity,  toward  the 
Godhead."  And  again:  "Each  mind  will  judge  itself  and 
not  another."  "The  judgment  will  be  right,  because  it  is 
the  judgment  of  self.  .  .  .  The  throne  is  within  you." 
Said  a  Spiritualistic  teacher,  as  the  "spiritual  consciousness" 
awoke  within  him,  "My  fellow-men,  all  were  un fallen  demi- 
gods." And  another  declares,  "  Any  just  and  perfect  being 
is  Christ," 

iJas.  :}:15.  2 Gen.  3:5. 


SPIRITUALISM.  555 


Thus,  in  place  of  the  righteousness  and  perfection  of  the 
infinite  God,  the  true  object  of  adoration;  in  place  of  the 
perfect  righteousness  of  his  law,  the  true  standard  of  human 
attainment,  Satan  has  substituted  the  sinful,  erring  nature 
of  man  himself,  as  the  only  object  of  adoration,  the  only 
rule  of  judgment,  or  standard  of  character.  This  is  progress, 
not  upward,  but  downward. 

It  is  a  law  both  of  the  intellectual  and  the  spiritual  nature, 
that  by  beholding,  we  become  changed.  The  mind  grad- 
ually adapts  itself  to  the  subjects  upon  which  it  is  allowed 
to  dwell.  It  becomes  assimilated  to  that  which  it  is  accus- 
tomed to  love  and  reverence.  Man  will  never  rise  higher 
than  his  standard  of  purity  or  goodness 'or  truth.  If  self 
is  his  loftiest  ideal,  he  will  never  attain  to  anything  more 
exalted.  Rather,  he  will  constantly  sink  lower  and  Iow7er. 
The  grace  of  God  alone  has  power  to  exalt  man.  Left  to 
himself,  his  course  must  inevitably  be  downward. 

To  the  self-indulgent,  the  pleasure-loving,  the  sensual, 
Spiritualism  presents  itself  under  a  less  subtle  disguise  than 
to  the  more  refined  and  intellectual;  in  its  grosser  forms 
they  find  that  which  is  in  harmony  with  their  inclinations. 
Satan  studies  every  indication  of  the  frailty  of  human  nat- 
ure, he  marks  the  sins  which  each  individual  is  inclined  to 
commit,  and  then  he  takes  care  that  opportunities  shall  not 
be  wanting  to  gratify  the  tendency  to  evil.  He  tempts  men 
to  excess  in  that  which  is  in  itself  lawful,  causing  them, 
through  intemperance,  to  weaken  physical,  mental,  and 
moral  power.  He  has  destroyed  and  is  destroying  thousands 
through  the  indulgence  of  the  passions,  thus  brutalizing  the 
entire  nature  of  man.  And  to  complete  his  work,  he  de- 
clares, through  the  spirits,  that  "true  knowledge  places  man 
above  all  law;"  that  "whatsoever  is,  is  right;"  that  "God 
doth  not  condemn;"  and  that  "all  sins  which  are  committed 
are  innocent."  When  the  people  are  thus  led  to  believe  that 
desire  is  the  highest  law,  that  liberty  is  license,  and  that  man 
is  accountable  only  to  himself,  who  can  wonder  that  corrup- 


556  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

tion  and  depravity  teem  on  every  hand?  Multitudes  ea- 
gerly accept  teachings  that  leave  them  at  liberty  to  obey  the 
promptings  of  the  carnal  heart.  The  reins  of  self-control  are 
laid  upon  the  neck  of  lust,  the  powers  of  mind  and  soul  are 
made  subject  to  the  animal  propensities,  and  Satan  exult- 
ingly  sweeps  into  his  net  thousands  who  profess  to  be  fol- 
lowers of  Christ. 

But  none  need  be  deceived  by  the  lying  claims  of  Spir- 
itualism. God  lias  given  the  wrorld  sufficient  light  to  enable 
them  to  discover  the  snare.  As  already  shown,  the  theory 
which  forms  the  very  foundation  of  Spiritualism  is  at  war 
with  the  plainest  statements  of  Scripture.  The  Bible  de- 
clares that  the  dead  know  not  anything,  that  their  thoughts 
have  perished;  they  have  no  part  in  anything  that  is  done 
under  the  sun;  they  know  nothing  of  the  joys  or  sorrows 
of  those  who  were  dearest  to  them  on  earth. 

Furthermore,  God  has  expressly  forbidden  all  pretended 
communication  with  departed  spirits.  In  the  days  of  the 
Hebrews  there  w*as  a  class  of  people  who  claimed,  as  do  the 
Spiritualists  of  to-day,  to  hold  communication  with  the  <le;nl. 
But  the  "  familiar  spirits,"  as  these  visitants  from  other 
worlds  were  called,  are  declared  by  the  Bible  to  be  the 
"spirits  of  devils."1  The  work  of  dealing  with  familiar 
spirits  was  pronounced  an  abomination  to  the  Lord,  and 
was  solemnly  forbidden  under  penalty  of  death.2  The  very 
name  of  witchcraft  is  now  held  in  contempt.  The  claim 
that  men  can  hold  intercourse  with  evil  spirits  is  regarded 
as  a  fable  of  the  Dark  Ages.  But  Spiritualism,  which  num- 
bers its  converts  by  hundreds  of  thousands,  yea,  by  millions, 
which  has  made  its  way  into  scientific  circles,  which  has 
invaded  churches,  and  has  found  favor  in  legislative  bodies, 
and  even  in  the  courts  of  kings — this  mammoth  deception 
is  hut  a  revival,  in  a  new  disguise,  of  the  witchcraft  con- 
demned and  prohibited  of  old. 

1  (  ompare  Num.  25  : 1-3;  Vs.  lOli :  28;  1  for.  10 :  20;  Kev.  16  : 14. 

2  Lev.  19:31;  20:27. 


SPIRITUALISM.  557 


If  there  were  no  other  evidence  of  the  real  character  of 
Spiritualism,  it  should  be  enough  for  the  Christian  that  the 
spirits  make  no  difference  between  righteousness  and  sin, 
between  the  noblest  and  purest  of  the  apostles  of  Christ  and 
the  most  corrupt  of  the  servants  of  Satan.  By  representing 
the  basest  of  men  as  in  Heaven,  and  highly  exalted  there, 
Satan  says  to  the  world:  "No  matter  how  wicked  you  are; 
no  matter  whether  you  believe  or  disbelieve  God  r.nd  the 
Bible.  Live  as  you  please;  Heaven  is  your  home."  The 
Spiritualist  teachers  virtually  declare,  "  Every  one  that  doeth 
evil  is  good  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and  he  delighteth  in 
them;  or,  Where  is  the  God  of  judgment?"1  Saith  the 
Word  of  God,  "Woe  unto  them  that  call  evil  good,  and 
good  evil;  that  put  darkness  for  light,  and  light  for  dark- 
ness."2 

The  apostles,  as  personated  by  these  lying  spirits,  are 
made  to  contradict  what  they  wrote  at  the  dictation  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  when  on  earth.  They  deny  the  divine  origin 
of  the  Bible,  and  thus  tear  away  the  foundation  of  the  Chris- 
tian's hope,  and  put  out  the  light  that  reveals  the  way  to 
Heaven.  Satan  is  making  the  world  believe  that  the  Bible 
is  a  mere  fiction,  or  at  least  a  book  suited  to  the  infancy  of 
the  race,  but  now  to  be  lightly  regarded,  or  cast  aside  as 
obsolete.  And  to  take  the  place  of  the  Word  of  God  he 
holds  out  spiritual  manifestations.  Here  is  a  channel  wholly 
under  his  control;  by  this  means  he  can  make  the  world 
believe  what  he  will.  The  Book  that  is  to  judge  him 
and  his  followers  he  puts  in  the  shade,  just  where  he 
wants  it;  the  Saviour  of  the  world  he  makes  to  be  no  more 
than  a  common  man.  And  as  the  Roman  guard  that 
watched  the  tomb  of  Jesus  spread  the  lying  report  which 
the  priests  and  elders  put  into  their  mouths  to  disprove  his 
resurrection,  so  do  the  believers  in  spiritual  manifestations 
try  to  make  it  appear  that  there  is  nothing  miraculous  in 
the  circumstances  of  our  Saviour's  life.  After  thus  seeking 

1  Mai.  2:17.  2Iaa.  5:20. 

40 


558  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


to  put  Jesus  in  the  background,  they  call  attention  to  their 
own  miracles,  declaring  that  these  far  exceed  the  works  of 
Christ. 

It  is  true  that  Spiritualism  is  now  changing  its  form,  and, 
veiling  some  of  its  more  objectionable  features,  is  assuming 
a  Christian  guise.  But  its  utterances  from  the  platform  and 
the  press  have  been  before  the  public  for  nearly  forty  years, 
and  in  these  its  real  character  stands  revealed.  These  teach- 
ings cannot  be  denied  or  hidden. 

Even  in  its  present  form,  so  far  from  being  more  worthy 
of  toleration  than  formerly,  it  is  really  a  more  dangerous, 
because  a  more  subtle  deception.  While  it  formerly  de- 
nounced Christ  and  the  Bible,  it  now  professes  to  accept 
both.  But  the  Bible  is  interpreted  in  a  manner  that  is 
pleasing  to  the  unrenewed  heart,  while  its  solemn  and  vital 
truths  are  made  of  no  effect.  Love  is  dwelt  upon  as  the 
chief  attribute  of  God,  but  it  is  degraded  to  a  weak  senti- 
mentalism  making  little  distinction  between  good  and  evil. 
God's  justice,  his  denunciations  of  sin,  the  requirements  of 
his  holy  law,  are  all  kept  out  of  sight.  The  people  are 
taught  to  regard  the  decalogue  as  a  dead  letter.  Pleasing, 
bewitching  fables  captivate  the  senses,  and  lead  men  to  re- 
ject the  Bible  as  the  foundation  of  their  faith.  Christ  is  as 
verily  denied  as  before;  but  Satan  has  so  blinded  the  eyes 
of  the  people  that  the  deception  is  not  discerned. 

There  are  few  who  have  any  just  conception  of  the  de- 
ceptive power  of  Spiritualism  and  the  danger  of  coming 
under  its  influence.  Many  tamper  with  it,  merely  to  gratify 
their  curiosity.  They  have  no  real  faith  in  it,  and  would 
be  filled'  with  horror  at  the  thought  of  yielding  themselves 
to  the  spirits'  control.  But  they  venture  upon  the  forbidden 
ground,  and  the  mighty  destroyer  exercises  his  power  upon 
them  against  their  will.  Let  them  once  be  induced  to  sub- 
mit their  minds  to  his  direction,  and  he  holds  them  captive. 
It  is  impossible,  in  their  own  strength,  to  break  away  from 
the  bewitching,  alluring  spell.  Nothing  but  the  power  of 


SPIRITUALISM.  559 


God,  granted  in  answer  to  the  earnest  prayer  of  faith,  can 
deliver  these  ensnared  souls. 

All  who  indulge  sinful  traits  of  character,  or  willfully 
cherish  a  known  sin,  are  inviting  the  temptations  of  Satan. 
They  separate  themselves  from  God  and  from  the  watchcare 
of  his  angels;  as  the  evil  one  presents  his  deceptions,  they 
are  without  defense,  and  fall  an  easy  prey.  Those  who 
thus  place  themselves  in  his  power,  little  realize  where  their 
course  will  end.  Having  achieved  their  overthrow,  the 
tempter  will  employ  them  as  his  agents  to  lure  others  to 
ruin. 

Says  the  prophet  Isaiah :  "  When  they  shall  say  unto  you, 
Seek  unto  them  that  have  familiar  spirits,  and  unto  wizards 
that  peep,  and  that  mutter:  should  not  a  people  seek  unto 
their  God?  for  the  living  to  the  dead?  To  the  law  and  to 
the  testimony.  If  they  speak  not  according  to  this  word, 
it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in  them."1  If  men  had  been 
willing  to  receive  the  truth  so  plainly  stated  in  the  Script- 
ures, concerning  the  nature  of  man  and  the  state  of  the 
dead,  they  would  see  in  the  claims  and  manifestations  of 
Spiritualism  the  working  of  Satan  with  power  and  signs 
and  lying  wonders.  But  rather  than  yield  the  liberty  so 
agreeable  to  the  carnal  heart,  and  renounce  the  sins  which 
they  love,  multitudes  close  their  eyes  to  the  light,  and  walk 
straight  on,  regardless  of  warnings,  while  Satan  weaves  his 
snares  about  them,  and  they  become  his  prey.  "  Because 
they  received  not  the  love  of  the  truth,  that  they  might  be 
saved,"  therefore  "  God  shall  send  them  strong  delusion,  that 
they  should  believe  a  lie." 2 

Those  who  oppose  the  teachings  of  Spiritualism  are  assail- 
ing, not  men  alone,  but  Satan  and  his  angels.  They  have 
entered  upon  a  contest  against  principalities  and  powers 
and  wicked  spirits  in  high  places.  Satan  will  not  yield  one 
inch  of  ground  except  as  he  is  driven- back  by  the  power 
of  heavenly  messengers,  The  people  of  God  should  be  able 

1  Isa.  8  : 19,  20.  2  Thess.  2  : 10,  11. 


560  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


to  meet  him,  as  did  our  Saviour,  with  the  words,  "  It  is 
written.7'  Satan  can  quote  Scripture  now  as  in  the  days  of 
Christ,  and  he  will  pervert  its  teachings  to  sustain  his  de- 
lusions. Those  who  would  stand  in  this  time  of  peril  must 
understand  for  themselves  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures. 

Many  will  be  confronted  by  the  spirits  of  devils  person- 
ating beloved  relatives  or  friends,  and  declaring  the  most 
dangerous  heresies.  These  visitants  will  appeal  to  our  ten- 
derest  sympathies,  and  will  work  miracles  to  sustain  their 
pretensions.  We  must  be  prepared  to  withstand  them  with 
the  Bible  truth  that  the  dead  know  not  anything,  and  that 
they  who  thus  appear  are  the  spirits  of  devils. 

Just  before  us  is  the  "hour  of  temptation,  which  shall 
come  upon  all  the  world,  to  try  them  that  dwell  upon  the 
earth."  '  All  whose  faith  is  not  firmly  established  upon  the 
Word  of  God  will  be  deceived  and  overcome.  Satan  "  works 
with  all  deceivableness  of  unrighteousness  "  to  gain  control 
of  the  children  of  men;  and  his  deceptions  will  continually 
increase.  But  he  can  gain  his  object  only  as  men  volun- 
tarily yield  to  his  temptations.  Those  who  are  earnestly 
seeking  a  knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  are  striving  to  purify 
their  souls  through  obedience,  thus  doing  what  they  can  to 
prepare  for  the  conflict,  will  find,  in  the  God  of  truth,  a  sure 
defense.  "  Because  thou  hast  kept  the  wTord  of  my  patience, 
I  also  will  keep  thee,"1  is  the  Saviour's  promise.  He  would 
sooner  send  every  arigel  out  of  Heaven  to  protect  his  people, 
than  leave  one  soul  that  trusts  in  him  to  be  overcome  by 
Satan. 

The  prophet  Isaiah  brings  to  view  the  fearful  deception 
which  will  come  upon  the  wicked,  causing  them  to  count 
themselves  secure  from  the  judgments  of  God:  "We  have 
made  a  covenant  with  death,  and  with  hell  are  we  at  agree- 
ment; when  the  overflowing  scourge  shall  pass  through, 
it  shall  not  come  unto  us;  for  we  have  made  lies  our  refuge, 
and  under  false) lood  have  we  hid  ourselves."2  In  the  class 

1  Rev.  3  : 10.  a  Isa.  28  : 15. 


SPIRITUALISM.  561 


here  described  are  included  those  who  in  their  stubborn 
impenitence  comfort  themselves  with  the  assurance  that 
there  is  to  be  no  punishment  for  the  sinner;  that  all  man- 
kind, it  matters  not  how  corrupt,  are  to  be  exalted  to  Heaven, 
to  become  as  the  angels  of  God.  But  still  more  emphat- 
ically are  those  making  a  covenant  with  death  and  an  agree- 
ment with  hell,  who  renounce  the  truths  which  Heaven  has 
provided  as  a  defense  for  the  righteous  in  the  day  of  trouble, 
and  accept  the  refuge  of  lies  offered  by  Satan  in  its  stead, — 
the  delusive  pretensions  of  Spiritualism. 

Marvelous  beyond  expression  is  the  blindness  of  the  people 
of  this  generation.  Thousands  reject  the  Word  of  God  as 
unworthy  of  belief,  and  with  eager  confidence  receive  the 
deceptions  of  Satan.  Skeptics  and  scoffers  denounce  the 
bigotry  of  those  who  contend  for  the  faith  of  prophets  and 
apostles,  and  they  divert  themselves  by  holding  up  to  ridi- 
cule the  solemn  declarations  of  the  Scriptures  concerning 
Christ  and  the  plan  of  salvation,  and  the  retribution  to  be 
visited  upon  the  rejecters  of  the  truth.  They  affect  great 
pity  for  minds  so  narrow,  weak,  and  superstitious  as  to  ac- 
knowledge the  claims  of  God,  and  obey  the  requirements 
of  his  law.  They  manifest  as  much  assurance  as  if,  indeed, 
they  had  made  a  covenant  with  death  and  an  agreement 
with  hell, — as  if  they  had  erected  an  impassable,  impene- 
trable barrier  between  themselves  and  the  vengeance  of  God. 
Nothing  can  arouse  their  fears.  So  fully  have  they  yielded 
to  the  tempter,  so  closely  are  they  united  with  him,  and  so 
thoroughly  imbued  with  his  spirit,  that  they  have  no  power 
and  no  inclination  to  break  away  from  his  snare. 

Satan  has  long  been  preparing  for  his  final  effort  to  de- 
ceive the  world.  The  foundation  of  his  work  was  laid  by 
the  assurance  given  to  Eve  in  Eden,  "Ye  shall  not  surely 
die."  "  In  the  day  ye  eat  thereof,  then  your  eyes  shall  be 
opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as  gods,  knowing  good  and  evil." l 
Little  by  little  he  has  prepared  the  way  for  his  master- piece 

3:4,  5. 


562  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


of  deception  in  the  development  of  Spiritualism.  He  has 
not  yet  reached  the  full  accomplishment  of  his  designs ;  but 
it  will  be  reached  in  the  last  remnant  of  time.  Says  the 
prophet:  "I  saw  three  unclean  spirits  like  frogs;  .  .  . 
they  are  the  spirits  of  devils,  working  miracles,  which  go 
forth  unto  the  kings  of  the  earth  and  of  the  whole  world,  to 
gather  them  to  the  battle  of  that  great  day  of  God  Almighty."1 
Except  those  who  are  kept  by  the  power  of  God,  through 
faith  in  his  Word,  the  whole  world  will  be  swept  into  the 
ranks  of  this  delusion.  The  people  are  fast  being  lulled  to 
a  fatal  security,  to  be  awakened  only  by  the  outpouring  of 
the  wrath  of  God. 

Saith  the  Lord  God:  "Judgment  also  will  I  lay  to  the 
line,  and  righteousness  to  the  plummet;  and  the  hail  shall 
sweep  away  the  refuge  of  lies,  and  the  waters  shall  overflow 
the  hiding-place.  And  your  covenant  with  death  shall  be 
disannulled,  and  your  agreement  with  hell  shall  not  stand; 
when  the  overflowing  scourge  shall  pass  through,  then  ye 
shall  be  trodden  down  by  it." a 

^ev.  16  :  13,  14.  2  Isa.  28  :  17,  18. 


CHAPTER    XXXV. 


CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY. 

ROMANISM  is  now  regarded  by  Protestants  with  far  greater 
favor  than  in  former  years.  In  those  countries  where  Cathol- 
icism is  not  in  the  ascendency,  and  the  papists  are  taking  a 
conciliatory  course  in  order  to  gain  influence,  there  is  an  in- 
creasing indifference  concerning  the  doctrines  that  separate 
the  reformed  churches  from  the  papal  hierarchy;  the  opin- 
ion is  gaining  ground,  that,  after  all,  we  do  not  differ  so 
widely  upon  vital  points  as  has  been  supposed,  and  that  a 
little  concession  on  our  part  will  bring  us  into  a  better  un- 
derstanding with  Rome.  The  time  was  when  Protestants 
placed  a  high  value  upon  the  liberty  of  conscience  which 
has  been  so  dearly  purchased.  They  taught  their  children 
to  abhor  popery,  and  held  that  to  seek  harmony  with  Rome 
would  be  disloyalty  to  God.  But  how  widely  different  are 
the  sentiments  now  expressed. 

The  defenders  of  popery  declare  that  the  church  has  been 
maligned;  and  the  Protestant  world  are  inclined  to  accept 
the  statement.  Many  urge  that  it  is  unjust  to  judge  the 
church  of  to-day  by  the  abominations  and  absurdities  that 
marked  her  reign  during  the  centuries  of  ignorance  and 
darkness.  They  excuse  her  horrible  cruelty  as  the  result  of 
the  barbarism  of  the  times,  and  plead  that  the  influence  of 
modern  civilization  has  changed  her  sentiments. 

Have  these  persons  forgotten  the  claim  of  infallibility  put 
forth  for  eight  hundred  years  by  this  haughty  power?  So 
far  from  being  relinquished,  this  claim  has  been  affirmed  in 
ihe  nineteenth  century  with  greater  positiveness  than  ever 
before.  As  Rome  asserts  that  she  "never  erred,  and  never 

(563) 


564  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


can  err" . how  can  she  renounce  the  principles  which  gov- 
erned her  course  in  past  ages  ? 

The  papal  church  will  never  relinquish  her  claim  to  infal- 
libility. All  that  she  has  done  in  her  persecution  of  those 
who  reject  her  dogmas,  she  holds  to  be  right;  and  would  she 
not  repeat  the  same  acts,  should  the  opportunity  be  pre- 
sented ?  Let  the  restraints  now  imposed  by  secular  govern- 
ments be  removed,  and  Rome  be  re-instated  in  her  former 
power,  and  there  would  speedily  be  a  revival  of  her  tyranny 
and  persecution. 

A  recent  writer1  speaks  thus  of  the  attitude  of  the  papal 
hierarchy  as  regards  freedom  of  conscience,  and  of  the  perils 
which  especially  threaten  the  United  States  from  the  success 
of  her  policy : — 

"  There  are  many  who  are  disposed  to  attribute  any  fear 
of  Roman  Catholicism  in  the  United  States  to  bigotry  or 
childishness.  Such  see  nothing  in  the  character  and  atti- 
tude of  Romanism  that  is  hostile  to  our  free  institutions,  or 
find  nothing  portentous  in  its  growth.  Let  us,  then,  first 
compare  some  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  our  govern- 
ment with  those  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

"  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  guarantees  liberty 
of  conscience.  Nothing  is  dearer  or  more  fundamental.  Pope 
Pius  IX.,  in  his  Encyclical  Letter  of  August  15,  1854,  said: 
*  The  absurd  and  erroneous  doctrines  or  ravings  in  defense  of 
liberty  of  conscience,  are  a  most  pestilential  error— a  pest,  of 
all  others,  most  to  be  dreaded  in  a  State/  The  same  pope,  in 
his  Encyclical  Letter  of  December  8,  1864,  anathematized 
1  those  who  assert  the  liberty  of  conscience  and  of  religious 
worship/  also  '  all  such  as  maintain  that  the  church  may  not 
employ  force.' 

"  The  pacific  tone  of  Rome  in  the  United  States  does  not 
imply  a  change  of  heart.  She  is  tolerant  where  she  is  help- 
less. Says  Bishop  O'Connor :  '  Religious  liberty  is  merely  en- 
dured until  the  opposite  can  be  carried  into  effect  without 

1  Josiah  Strong,  D.  D.,  in  "Our  Country,"  pp.  46-48. 


CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.      565 

peril  to  the  Catholic  world.' "  "  The  archbishop  of  St.  Louis 
once  said:  '  Heresy  and  unbelief  are  crimes;  and  in  Christian 
countries,  as  in  Italy  and  Spain,  for  instance,  where  all  the 
people  are  Catholics,  and  where  the  Catholic  religion  is  an 
essential  part  of  the  law  of  the  land,  they  are  punished  as 
other  crimes.' " 

"  Every  cardinal,  archbishop,  and  bishop  in  the  Catholic 
Church  takes  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  pope,  in  which 
occur  the  following  words:  '  Heretics,  schismatics,  and  rebels 
to  our  said  lord  the  pope,  or  his  aforesaid  successors,  I  will 
to  my  utmost  persecute  and  oppose.' " 

It  is  true  that  there  are  real  Christians  in  the  Roman 
Catholic  communion.  Thousands  in  that  church  are  serving 
God  according  to  the  best  light  they  have.  They  are  not 
allowed  access  to  his  Word,  and  therefore  they  do  not  dis- 
cern the  truth.  They  have  never  seen  the  contrast  between 
a  living  heart-service  and  a  round  of  mere  forms  and  cere- 
monies. God  looks  with  pitying  tenderness  upon  these 
souls,  educated  as  they  are  in  a  faith  that  is  delusive  and 
unsatisfying.  He  will  cause  rays  of  light  to  penetrate  the 
dense  darkness  that  surrounds  them.  He  will  reveal  to  them 
the  truth,  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  and  many  will  yet  take  their 
position  with  his  people. 

But  Romanism  as  a  system  is  no  more  in  harmony  with 
the  gospel  of  Christ  now  than  at  any  former  period  in  her 
history.  The  Protestant  churches  are  in  great  darkness,  or 
they  would  discern  the  signs  of  the  times.  The  Roman 
Church  is  far-reaching  in  her  plans  and  modes  of  operation. 
She  is  employing  every  device  to  extend  her  influence  and 
increase  her  power  in  preparation  for  a  fierce  and  deter- 
mined conflict  to  regain  control  of  the  world,  to  re-establish 
persecution,  and  to  undo  all  that  Protestantism  has  done. 
Catholicism  is  gaining  ground  upon  every  side.1  See  the 
increasing  number  of  her  churches  and  chapels  in  Protest- 
ant countries.  Look  at  the  popularity  of  her  colleges  and 

*See  Appendix,  Note  10. 


566  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


seminaries  in  America,  so  widely  patronized  by  Protestants. 
Look  at  the  growth  of  ritualism  in  England,  and  the  fre- 
quent defections  to  the  ranks  of  the  Catholics.  These  things 
should  awaken  the  anxiety  of  all  who  prize  the  pure  prin- 
ciples of  the  gospel. 

Protestants  have  tampered  with  and  patronized  popery; 
they  have  made  compromises  and  concessions  which  papists 
themselves  are  surprised  to  see,  and  fail  to  understand.  Men 
are  closing  their  eyes  to  the  real  character  of  Romanism,  and 
the  dangers  to  be  apprehended  from  her  supremacy.  The 
people  need  to  be  aroused  to  resist  the  advances  of  this  most 
dangerous  foe  to  civil  and  religious  liberty. 

Many  Protestants  suppose  that  the  Catholic  religion  is  un- 
attractive, and  that  its  worship  is  a  dull,  meaningless  round  of 
ceremony.  Here  they  mistake.  While  Romanism  is  based 
upon  deception,  it  is  not  a  coarse  and  clumsy  imposture.  The 
religious  service  of  the  Romish  Church  is  a  most  impressive 
ceremonial.  Its  gorgeous  display  and  solemn  rites  fascinate 
the  senses  of  the  people,  and  silence  the  voice  of  reason  and 
of  conscience.  The  eye  is  charmed.  Magnificent  churches, 
imposing  processions,  golden  altars,  jeweled  shrines,  choice 
paintings,  and  exquisite  sculpture  appeal  to  the  love  of 
beauty.  The  ear  also  is  captivated.  The  music  is  unsur- 
passed. The  rich  notes  of  the  deep-toned  organ,  blending 
with  the  melody  of  many  voices  as  it  swells,  through  the 
lofty  domes  and  pillared  aisles  of  her  grand  cathedrals,  can- 
not fail  to  impress  the  mind  with  awe  and  reverence. 

This  outward  splendor,  pomp,  and  ceremony,  that  only 
mocks  the  longings  of  the  sin-sick  soul,  is  an  evidence  of 
inward  corruption.  The  religion  of  Christ  needs  not  such 
attractions  to  recommend  it.  In  the  light  shining  from  the 
cross,  true  Christianity  appears  so  pure  and  lovely  that  no 
external  decorations  can  enhance  its  true  worth.  It  is  the 
beauty  of  holiness,  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  which  is  of  value 
with  God. 

Brilliancy  of  style  is  not  necessarily  an  index  of  pure,  ele- 


CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.       567 


vated  thought.  High  conceptions  of  art,  delicate  refinement 
of  taste,  often  exist  in  minds  that  are  earthly  and  sensual. 
They  are  often  employed  by  Satan  to  lead  men  to  forget  the 
necessities  of  the  soul,  to  lose  sight  of  the  future,  immortal 
life,  to  turn  away  from  their  infinite  Helper,  and  to  live  for 
this  world  alone. 

A  religion  of  externals  is  attractive  to  the  unrenewed 
heart.  The  pomp  and  ceremony  of  the  Catholic  worship 
have  a  seductive,  bewitching  power,  by  which  many  are  de- 
ceived; and  they  come  to  look  upon  the  Roman  Church  as 
the  very  gate  of  Heaven.  None  but  those  who  have  planted 
their  feet  firmly  upon  the  foundation  of  truth,  and  whose 
hearts  sire  renewed  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  are  proof  against 
her  influence.  Thousands  who  have  not  an  experimental 
knowledge  of  Christ  will  be  led  to  accept  the  forms  of  godli- 
ness without  the  power.  Such  a  religion  is  just  what  the 
multitudes  desire. 

The  church's  claim  to  the  right  to  pardon,  causes  the 
Romanist  to  feel  at  liberty  to  sin;  and  the  ordinance  of 
confession,  without  which  her  pardon  is  not  granted,  tends 
also  to  give  license  to  evil.  He  who  kneels  before  fallen 
man,  and  opens  in  confession  the  secret  thoughts  and  imag- 
inations of  his  heart,  is  debasing  his  manhood,  and  degrad- 
ing every  noble  instinct  of  his  soul.  In  unfolding  the  sins  of 
his  life  to  a  priest, — an  erring,  sinful  mortal,  and  too  often 
corrupted  with  wine  and  licentiousness, — his  standard  of 
character  is  lowered,  and  he  is  defiled  in  consequence.  His 
thought  of  God  is  degraded  to  the  likeness  of  fallen  human- 
ity ;  for  the  priest  stands  as  a  representative  of  God.  This 
degrading  confession  of  man  to  man  is  the  secret  spring 
from  which  has  flowed  much  of  the  evil  that  is  defiling  the 
world,  and  fitting  it  for  the  final  destruction.  Yet  to  him 
who  loves  self-indulgence,  it  is  more  pleasing  to  confess  to  a 
fellow-mortal  than  to  open  the  soul  to  God.  It  is  more  pal- 
atable to  human  nature  to  do  penance  than  to  renounce  sin ; 
it  is  easier  to  mortify  the  flesh  by  sackcloth  and  nettles  and 


568  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


galling  chains  than  to  crucify  fleshly  lusts.  Heavy  is  the 
yoke  which  the  carnal  heart  is  willing  to  bear  rather  than 
bow  to  the  yoke  of  Christ. 

There  is  a  striking  similarity  bet  ween  the  Church  of  Rome 
and  the  Jewish  Church  at  the  time  of  Christ's  first  advent. 
While  the  Jews  secretly  trampled  upon  every  principle  of 
the  law  of  God,  they  were  outwardly  rigorous  in  the  observ- 
ance of  its  precepts,  loading  it  down  with  exactions  and 
traditions  that  made  obedience  painful  and  burdensome. 
As  the  Jews  professed  to  revere  the  law,  so  do  Romanists 
claim  to  reverence  the  cross.  They  exalt  the  symbol  of 
Christ's  sufferings,  while  in  their  lives  they  deny  him  whom 
it  represents. 

Papists  place  crosses  upon  their  churches,  upon  their  altars, 
and  upon  their  garments.  Everywhere  is  seen  the  insignia 
of  the  cross.  Everywhere  it  is  outwardly  honored  and  ex- 
alted. But  the  teachings  of  Christ  are  buried  beneath  a 
mass  of  senseless  traditions,  false  interpretations,  and  rigorous 
exactions.  The  Saviour's  words  concerning  the  bigoted 
Jews,  apply  with  still  greater  force  to  the  Romish  leaders: 
"  They  bind  heavy  burdens  and  grievous  to  be  borne,  and 
lay  them  on  men's  shoulders;  but  they  themselves  will  not 
move  them  with  one  of  their  fingers."1  Conscientious  souls 
are  kept  in  constant  terror,  fearing  the  wrath  of  an  offended 
God,  while  the  dignitaries  of  the  church  are  living  in  lux- 
ury and  sensual  pleasure. 

The  worship  of  images  and  relics,  the  invocation  of  saints, 
and  the  exaltation  of  the  pope,  are  devices  of  Satan  to  at- 
tract the  minds  of  the  people  from  God  and  from  his  Son. 
To  accomplish  their  ruin,  he  endeavors  to  turn  their  atten- 
tion from  Him  through  whom  alone  they  can  find  salvation. 
He  will  direct  them  to  any  object  that  can  be  substituted  for 
the  One  who  has  said,  "  Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor 
and  are  heavy-laden,  and  T  will  give  you  rest."2 

It  is  Satan's  constant  effort  to  misrepresent  the  character 

1  Matt.  23:4.  2  Matt.  11:28. 


CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.      569 

of  God,  the  nature  of  sin,  and  the  real  issues  at  stake  in  the 
great  controversy.  His  sophistry  lessens  the  obligation  of 
the  divine  law,  and  gives  men  license  to  sin.  At  the  same 
time  he  causes  them  to  cherish  false  conceptions  of  God,  so 
that  they  regard  him  with  fear  and  hate,  rather  than  with 
love.  The  cruelty  inherent  in  his  own  character  is  attrib- 
uted to  the  Creator;  it  is  embodied  in  systems  of  religion, 
and  expressed  in  modes  of  worship.  Thus  the  minds  of  men 
are  blinded,  and  Satan  secures  them  as  his  agents  to  war 
against  God.  By  perverted  conceptions  of  the  divine  attri- 
butes, heathen  nations  were  led  to  believe  human  sacrifices 
necessary  to  secure  the  favor  of  Deity;  and  horrible  cruelties 
have  been  perpetrated  under  the  various  forms  of  idolatry. 
The  Romish  Church,  uniting  the  forms  of  paganism  and 
Christianity,  and,  like  paganism,  misrepresenting  the  char- 
acter of  God,  has  resorted  to  practices  no  less  cruel  and  re- 
volting. In  the  days  of  Rome's  supremacy,  there  were 
instruments  of  torture  to  compel  assent  to  her  doctrines. 
There  was  the  stake  for  those  who  would  not  concede  to  her 
claims.  There  were  massacres  on  a  scale  that  will  never  be 
known  until  revealed  in  the  Judgment.  Dignitaries  of  the 
church  studied,  under  Satan  their  master,  to  invent  means 
to  cause  the  greatest  possible  torture,  and  not  end  the  life  of 
their  victim.  The  infernal  process  was  repeated  to  the  ut- 
most limit  of  human  endurance,  until  nature  gave  up  the 
struggle,  and  the  sufferer  hailed  death  as  a  sweet  release. 

Such  was  the  fate  of  Rome's  opponents.  For  her  adher- 
ents she  had  the  discipline  of  the  scourge,  of  famishing 
hunger,  of  bodily  austerities  in  every  conceivable,  heart- 
sickening  form.  To  secure  the  favor  of  Heaven,  penitents 
violated  the  laws  of  God  by  violating  the  laws  of  nature. 
They  were  tau'ght  to  sunder  every  tie  which  he  has  formed 
to  bless  and  gladden  man's  earthly  sojourn.  The  church- 
yard contains  millions  of  victims,  who  spent  their  lives  in 
vain  endeavors  to  subdue  their  natural  affections,  to  repress, 
as  offensive  to  God,  every  thought  and  feeling  of  sympathy 
with  their  fellow-creatures. 

41 


570  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


If  we  desire  to  understand  the  determined  cruelty  of  Satan, 
manifested  for  hundreds  of  years,  not  among  those  who 
never  heard  of  God,  but  in  the  very  heart  and  throughout 
the  extent  of  Christendom,  we  have  only  to  look  at  the 
history  of  Romanism.  Through  this  mammoth  system  of 
deception  the  prince  of  evil  achieves  his  purpose  of  bringing 
dishonor  to  God  and  wretchedness  to  man.  And  as  we  see 
how  he  succeeds  in  disguising  himself,  and  accomplishing 
his  work  through  the  leaders  of  the  church,  we  may  better 
understand  why  he  has  so  great  antipathy  to  the  Bible.  If 
that  book  is  read,  the  mercy  and  love  of  God  will  be  re- 
vealed; it  will  be  seen  that  he  lays  upon  men  none  of  these 
heavy  burdens.  All  that  he  asks  is  a  broken  and  contrite 
heart,  a  humble,  obedient  spirit. 

Christ  gives  no  example  in  his  life  for  men  and  women  to 
shut  themselves  in  monasteries  in  order  to  become  fitted  for 
I  leaven.  He  has  never  taught  that  love  and  sympathy  must 
be  repressed.  The  Saviour's  heart  overflowed  with  love.  The 
nearer  man  approaches  to  moral  perfection,  the  keener  are  his 
sensibilities,  the  more  acute  is  his  perception  of  sin,  and  the 
deeper  his  sympathy  for  the  afflicted.  The  pope  claims  to 
be  the  vicar  of  Christ;  but  how  does  his  character  bear  com- 
parison witli  that  of  our  Saviour?  Was  Christ  ever  known  to 
consign  men  to  the  prison  or  the  rack  because  they  did  not 
pay  him  homage  as  the  King  of  Heaven  ?  Was  his  voice 
heard  condemning  to  death  those  who  did  not  accept  him  ? 
When  he  was  slighted  by  the  people  of  a  Samaritan  village, 
the  apostle  John  was  filled  with  indignation,  and  inquired, 
"  Lord,  wilt  thou  that  we  command  fire  to  come  down  from 
heaven,  and  consume  them,  even  as  Ellas. did  ?  "  Jesus  looked 
with  pity  upon  his  disciple,  and  rebuked  his  harsh  spirit, 
saying,  "  The  Son  of  man  is  not  come  to  destroy  men's  lives, 
hut  to  save  them."1  How  different  from  the  spirit  mani- 
fested by  Christ  is  that  of  his  professed  vicar. 

The  Romish  Church  no\v  presents  a  fair  front  to  the  world, 
1  Luke  9  : 54,  56. 


CHARACTER  AND  AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.       571 

covering  with  apologies  her  record  of  horrible  .cruelties.  She 
has  clothed  herself  in  Christ-like  garments;  but  she  is  un- 
changed. Every  principle  of  popery  that  existed  in  past 
ages  exists  to-day.  The  doctrines  devised  in  the  darkest 
ages  are  still  held.  Let  none  deceive  themselves.  The 
popery  that  Protestants  are  now  so  ready  to  honor  is  the 
same  that  ruled  the  world  in  the  days  of  the  Reformation, 
when  men  of  God  stood  up,  at  the  peril  of  their  lives,  to  ex- 
pose her  iniquity.  She  possesses  the  same  pride  and  arro- 
gant assumption  that  lorded  it  over  kings  and  princes,  and 
claimed  the  prerogatives  of  God.  Her  spirit  is  no  less  cruel 
and  despotic  now  than  when  she  crushed  out  human  liberty, 
and  slew  the  saints  of  the  Most  High. 

Popery  is  just  what  prophecy  declared  that  she  would  be, 
the  apostasy  of  the  latter  times.1  It  is  a  part  of  her  policy 
to  assume  the  character  which  will  best  accomplish  her  pur- 
pose; but  beneath  the  variable  appearance  of  the  chameleon, 
she  conceals  the  invariable  venom  of  the  serpent.  "  We  are 
not  bound  to  keep  faith  and  promises  to  heretics,"  she  de- 
clares. Shall  this  power,  whose  record  for  a  thousand  years 
is  written  in  the  blood  of  the  saints,  be  now  acknowledged 
as  a  part  of  the  church  of  Christ  ? 

It  is  not  without  reason  that  the  claim  has  been  put  forth 
in  Protestant  countries,  that  Catholicism  differs  less  widely 
from  Protestantism  than  in  former  times.  There  has  been  a 
change ;  but  the  change  is  not  in  the  papacy.  Catholicism 
indeed  resembles  much  of  the  Protestantism  that  now  exists; 
because  Protestantism,  has  so  greatly  degenerated  since  the 
days  of  the  reformers. 

As  the  Protestant  churches  have  been  seeking  the  favor  of 
the  world,  false  charity  has  blinded  their  eyes.  They  do  not 
see  but  that  it  is  right  to  believe  good  of  all  evil ;  and  as  the 
inevitable  result,  they  will  finally  believe  evil  of  all  good. 
Instead  of  standing  in  defense  of  the  faith  once  delivered  to 
the  saints,  they  are  now,  as  it  were,  apologizing  to  Rome  for 

1  2  Thess.  2  :  3, 4. 


572  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


their  uncharitable  opinion  of  her,  begging  pardon  for  their 
bigotry. 

A  large  class,  even  of  those  who  look  upon  Romanism 
with  no  favor,  apprehend  little  danger  from  her  power  and 
influence.  Many  urge  that  the  intellectual  and  moral  dark- 
ness prevailing  during  me  Middle  Ages  favored  the  spread 
of  her  dogmas,  superstitions,  and  oppression,  and  that  the 
greater  intelligence  of  modern  times,  the  general  diffusion  of 
knowledge,  and  the  increasing  liberality  in  matters  of  re- 
ligion, forbid  a  revival  of  intolerance  and  tyranny.  The 
very  thought  that  such  a  state  of  things  will  exist  in  this 
enlightened  age  is  ridiculed.  It  is  true  that  great  light,  in- 
tellectual, moral,  and  religious,  is  shining  upon  this  genera- 
tion. In  the  open  pages  of  God's  holy  Word,  light  from 
Heaven  has  been  shed  upon  the  world.  But  it  should  be  re- 
membered that  the  greater  the  light  bestowed,  the  greater 
the  darkness  of  those  who  pervert  or  reject  it. 

A  prayerful  study  of  the  Bible  would  show  Protestants  the 
real  character  of  the  papacy,  and  would  cause  them  to  abhor 
and  to  shun  it;  but  many  are  so  wise  in  their  own  conceit 
that  they  feel  no  need  of  humbly  seeking  God  that  they  may 
be  led  into  the  truth.  Although  priding  themselves  on  their 
enlightenment,  they  are  ignorant  both  of  the  Scriptures  and 
of  the  power  of  God.  They  must  have  some  means  of  quiet- 
ing their  consciences;  and  they  seek  that  which  is  least 
spiritual  and  humiliating.  What  they  desire  is  a  method  of 
forgetting  God  which  shall  pass  as  a  method  of  remember- 
ing him.  The  papacy  is  well  adapted  to  meet  the  wants  of 
all  these.  It  is  prepared  for  two  classes  of  mankind,  em- 
bracing nearly  the  whole  world, — those  who  would  be  saved 
by  their  merits,  and  those  who  would  be  saved  in  their  sins. 
Here  is  the  secret  of  its  power. 

A  day  of  great  intellectual  darkness  has  been  shown  to  be 
favorable  to  the  success  of  popery.  It  will  yet  be  demon- 
strated that  a  day  of  great  intellectual  light  is  equally  fa- 
vorable for  its  success.  In  past  ages,  when  men  were  with- 


AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.  573 

out  God's  Word,  and  without  the  knowledge  of  the  truth, 
their  eyes  were  blindfolded,  and  thousands  were  ensnared, 
not  seeing  the  net  spread  for  their  feet.  In  this  generation 
there  are  many  whose  eyes  become  dazzled  by  the  glare  of 
ftuman  speculations,  "  science  falsely  so-called ;  "  they  dis- 
cern not  the  net,  and  walk  into  it  as  readily  as  if  blindfolded. 
God  designed  that  man's  intellectual  powers  should  be  held  as 
a  gift  from  his  Maker,  and  should  be  employed  in  the  service 
of  truth  and  righteousness;  but  when  pride  and  ambition  are 
cherished,  and  men  exalt  their  own  theories  above  the  Word 
of  God,  then  intelligence  can  accomplish  greater  harm  than 
ignorance.  Thus  the  false  science  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
which  undermines  faith  in  the  Bible,  will  prove  as  successful 
in  preparing  the  way  for  the  acceptance  of  the  papacy,  with 
its  pleasing  forms,  as  did  the  withholding  of  knowledge  in 
opening  the  way  for  its  aggrandizement  in  the  Dark  Ages. 

In  the  movements  now  in  progress  in  the  United  States  to 
secure  for  the  institutions  and  usages  of  the  church  the  sup- 
port of  the  State,  Protestants  are  following  in  the  steps  of 
papists.1  Nay,  more,  they  are  opening  the  door  for  popery  to 
regain  in  Protestant  America  the  -supremacy  which  she  has 
lost  in  the  Old  World.  And  that  which  gives  greater  sig- 
nificance to  this  movement,  is  the  fact  that  the  principal 
object  contemplated  is  the  enforcement  of  Sunday  observ- 
ance,— a  custom  which  originated  with  Rome,  and  which 
she  claims  as  the  sign  of  her  authority.  It  is  the  spirit  of 
the  papacy, — the  spirit  of  conformity  to  worldly  customs, 
the  veneration  for  human  traditions  above  the  command- 
ments of  God, — that  is  permeating  the  Protestant  churches, 
and  leading  them  on  to  do  the  same  work  of  Sunday  exalta- 
tion which  the  papacy  has  done  before  them. 

If  the  reader  would  understand  the  agencies  to  be  em- 
ployed in  the  soon-coming  contest,  he  has  but  to  trace  the 
record  of  the  means  which  Rome  employed  for  the  same  ob- 
ject in  ages  past.  If  he  would  know  how  papists  and  Protest 

1See  Appendix,  Note  11. 


574  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


ants  united  will  deal  with  those  who  reject  their  dogmas, 
let  him  see  the  spirit  which  Rome  manifested  toward  the 
Sabbath  and  its  defenders. 

Royal  edicts,  general  councils,  and  church  ordinances  sus- 
tained by  secular  power,  were  the  steps  by  which  the  pagan 
festival  attained  its  position  of  honor  in  the  Christian  world. 
The  first  public  measure  enforcing  Sunday  observance  was 
the  law  enacted  by  Constantine.1  This  edict  required  towns- 
people to  rest  on  "  the  venerable  day  of  the  sun,",  but  per- 
mitted countrymen  to  continue  their  agricultural  pursuits. 
Though  virtually  .a  heathen  statute,  it  was  enforced  by  the 
emperor  after  his  nominal  acceptance  of  Christianity. 

The  royal  mandate  not  proving  a  sufficient  substitute  for 
divine  authority,  Eusebius,  a  bishop  who  sought  the  favor 
of  princes,  and  who  was  the  special  friend  and  flatterer  of 
Constantine,  advanced  the  claim  that  Christ  had  transferred 
the  Sabbath  to  Sunday.  Not  a  single  testimony  of  the  Script- 
ures was  produced  in  proof  of  the  new  doctrine.  Eusebius 
himself  unwittingly  acknowledges  its  falsity,  and  points  to 
the  real  authors  of  the  change.  "All  things,"  he  says,  "  what- 
soever that  it  was  duty  to-do  on  the  Sabbath,  these  we  have 
transferred  to  the  Lord's  day."  But  the  Sunday  argument, 
groundless  as  it  was,  served  to  embolden  men  in  trampling 
upon  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord.  All  who  desired  to  be  hon- 
ored by  the  world  accepted  the  popular  festival. 

As  the  papacy  became  firmly  established,  the  work  of 
Sunday  exaltation  was  continued.  For  a  time  the  people  en- 
gaged in  agricultural  labor  when  not  attending  church,  and 
the  seventh  day  was  still  regarded  as  the  Sabbath.  But 
steadily  a  change  was  effected.  Those  in  holy  office  were 
forbidden  to  pass  judgment  in  any  civil  controversy  on  the 
Sunday.  Soon  after,  all  persons,  of  whatever  rank,  were 
commanded  to  refrain  from  common  labor,  on  pain  of  a  fine 
for  freemen,  and  stripes  in  the  case  of  servants.  Later  it 
was  decreed,  that  rich  men  should  be  punished  with  the  loss 

1  A.  D.  321. 


AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.  575 


of  half  of  their  estates;  and  finally,  that  if  still  obstinate 
they  should  be  made  slaves.  The  lower  classes  were  to  suf- 
fer perpetual  banishment. 

Miracles  also  were  called  into  requisition.  Among  other 
wonders  it  was  reported  that  as  a  husbandman  who  was 
about  to  plow  his  field  on  Sunday,  cleaned  his  plow  with 
an  iron,  the  iron  stuck  fast  in  his  hand,  and  for  two  years 
he  carried  it  about  with  him,  "  to  his  exceeding  great  pain 
and  shame." 

Later,  the  pope  gave  directions  that  the  parish  priest 
should  admonish  the  violators  of  Sunday,  and  wish  them 
to  go  to  church  and  say  their  prayers,  lest  they  bring  some 
great  calamity  on  themselves  and  neighbors.  An  ecclesi- 
astical council  brought  forward  the  argument,  since  so  widely 
employed,  even  by  Protestants,  that  because  persons  had 
been  struck  by  lightning  wThile  laboring  on  Sunday,  it  must 
be  the  Sabbath.  "  It  is  apparent,"  said  the  prelates,  "  how 
high  the  displeasure  of  God  was  upon  their  neglect  of  this 
day."  An  appeal  was  then  made  that  priests  and  ministers, 
kings  and  princes,  and  all  faithful  people,  "use  their  utmost 
endeavors  and  care  that  the  day  be  restored  to  its  honor, 
and,  for  the  credit  of  Christianity,  more  devoutly  observed 
for  time  to  come." 

The  decrees  of  councils  proving  insufficient,  the  secular 
authorities  were  besought  to  issue  an  edict  that  would  strike 
terror  to  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  force  them  to  refrain 
from  labor  on  the  Sunday.  At  a  synod  held  in  Rome,  all 
previous  decisions  were  reaffirmed  with  greater  force  and 
solemnity.  They  were  also  incorporated  into  the  ecclesi- 
astical law,  and  enforced  by  the  civil  authorities  throughout 
nearly  all  Christendom. 

Still  the  absence  of  scriptural  authority  for  Sunday-keeping 
occasioned  no  little  embarrassment.  The  people  questioned 
the  right  of  their  teachers  to  set  aside  the  positive  declaration 
of  Jehovah,  "  The  seventh  day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord 
thy  God,"  in  order  to  honor  the  day  of  the  sun.  To  supply 


576  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  lack  of  Bible  testimony,  other  expedients  were  necessary. 
A  zealous  advocate  of  Sunday,  who  about  the  close  of  the 
twelfth  century  visited  the  churches  of  England,  was  re- 
sisted by  faithful  witnesses  for  the  truth;  and  so  fruitless 
were  his  efforts  that  he  departed  from  the  country  for  a 
season,  and  cast  about  him  for  some  means  to  enforce  his 
teachings.  When  he  returned,  the  lack  was  supplied,  and 
in  his  after-labors  he  met  with  greater  success.  He  brought 
with  him  a  roll  purporting  to  be  from  God  himself,  which 
contained  the  needed  command  for  Sunday  observance,  with 
awful  threats  to  terrify  the  disobedient.  This  precious  docu- 
ment— as  base  a  counterfeit  as  the  institution  it  supported — 
was  said  to  have  fallen  from  Heaven,  and  to  have  been 
found  in  Jerusalem,  upon  the  altar  of  St.  Simeon,  in  Gol- 
gotha. But  in  fact,  the  pontifical  palace  at  Home  was  the 
source  whence  it  proceeded.  Frauds  and  forgeries  to  ad- 
vance the  power  and  prosperity  of  the  church  have  in  all 
ages  been  esteemed  lawful  by  the  papal  hierarchy. 

The  roll  forbade  labor  from  the  ninth  hour,  three  o'clock, 
on  Saturday  afternoon,  till  sunrise  on  Monday;  and  its 
authority  was  declared  to  be  confirmed  by  many  miracles. 
It  was  reported  that  persons  laboring  beyond  the  appointed 
hour  were  stricken  with  paralysis.  A  miller  who  attempted 
to  grind  his  corn,  saw,  instead  of  flour,  a  torrent  of  blood 
come  forth,  and  the  mill-wheel  stood  still,  notwithstanding 
the  strong  rush  of  the  water.  A  woman  who  placed  dough 
in  the  oven,  found  it  raw  when  taken  out,  though  the  oven 
was  very  hot.  Another  who  had  dough  prepared  for  bak- 
ing at  the  ninth  hour,  but  determined  to  set  it  aside  till 
Monday,  found,  the  next  day,  that  it  had  been  made  into 
loaves  and  baked  by  divine  power.  A  man  who  baked 
bread  after  the  ninth  hour  on  Saturday,  found,  when  he 
broke  it  the  next  morning,  that  blood  started  therefrom. 
By  such  absurd  and  superstitious  fabrications  did  the  ad- 
vocates of  Sunday  endeavor  to  establish  its  sacredness. 


AIMS  OF  THE  PA  PACT.  577 


In  Scotland,  as  in  England,  a  greater  regard  for  Sunday 
was  secured  by  uniting  with  it-  a  portion  of  the  ancient  Sab- 
bath. But  the  time  required  to  be  kept  holy  varied.  An 
edict  from  the  king  of  Scotland  declared  that  Saturday  from 
twelve  at  noon  ought  to  be  accounted  holy,  and  that  no 
man,  from  that  time  till  Monday  morning,  should  engage 
in  worldly  business. 

But  notwithstanding  all  the  efforts  to  establish  Sunday 
sacredness,  papists  themselves  publicly  confessed  the  divine 
authority  of  the  Sabbath,  and  the  human  origin  of  the  in- 
stitution by  which  it  had  been  supplanted.  In  the  sixteenth 
century  a  papal  council  plainly  declared:  "Let  all  Chris- 
tians remember  that  the  seventh  day  was  consecrated  by 
God,  and  hath  been  received  and  observed,  not  only  by  the 
Jews,  but  by  all  others  who  pretend  to  worship  God ;  though 
we  Christians  have  changed  their  Sabbath  into  the  Lord's 
day."  Those  who  were  tampering  with  the  divine  law  were 
not  ignorant  of  the  character  of  their  work.  They  were 
deliberately  setting  themselves  above  God. 

A  striking  illustration  of  Rome's  policy  toward  those  who 
disagree  with  her  was  given  in  the  long  and  bloody  per- 
secution of  the  Waldenses,  some  of  whom  were  observers  of 
the  Sabbath.  Others  suffered  in  a  similar  manner  for  their 
fidelity  to  the  fourth  commandment.  The  history  of  the 
churches  of  Ethiopia  and  Abyssinia  is  especially  significant. 
Amid  the  gloom  of  the  Dark  Ages,  the  Christians  of  Central 
Africa  were  lost  sight  of  and  forgotten  by  the  world,  and  for 
many  centuries  they  enjoyed  freedom  in.  the  exercise  of  their 
faith.  But  at  last  Rome  learned  of  their  existence,  and  the 
emperor  of  Abyssinia  was  soon  beguiled  into  an  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  pope  as  the  vicar  of  Christ.  Other  con- 
cessions followed.  An  edict  was  issued  forbidding  the  ob- 
servance of  the  Sabbath  under  the  severest  penalties.  But 
papal  tyranny  soon  became  a  yoke  so  galling  that  the  Abys- 
sinians  determined  to  break  it  from  their  necks.  After  a 
terrible  struggle,  the  Romanists  were  banished  from  their 


578  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


dominions,  and  the  ancient  faith  was  restored.  The  churches 
rejoiced  in  their  freedom,  and  they  never  forgot  the  lesson 
they  had  learned  concerning  the  deception,  the  fanaticism, 
and  the  despotic  power  of  Rome.  Within  their  solitary 
realm  they  were  content  to  remain,  unknown  to  the  rest  of 
Christendom. 

The  churches  of  Africa  held  the  Sabbath  as  it  was  held 
by  the  papal  church  before  her  complete  apostasy.  While 
they  kept  the  seventh  day  in  obedience  to  the  command- 
ment of  God,  they  abstained  from  labor  on  the  Sunday  in 
conformity  to  the  custom  of  the  church.  Upon  obtaining 
supreme  power,  Rome  had  trampled  upon  the  Sabbath  of 
God  to  exalt  her  own ;  but  the  churches  of  Africa,  hidden 
for  nearly  a  thousand  years,  did  not  share  in  this  apostasy. 
When  brought  under  the  sway  of  Rome,  they  were  forced 
to  set  aside  the  true  and  exalt  the  false  Sabbath;  but  no 
sooner  had  they  regained  their  independence  than  they-  re- 
turned to  obedience  to  the  fourth  commandment.1 

These  records  of  the  past  clearly  reveal  the  enmity  of 
Rome  toward  the  true  Sabbath  and  its  defenders,  and  the 
means  which  she  employs  to  honor  the  institution  of  her 
creating.  The  Word  of  God  teaches  that  these  scenes  are 
to  be  repeated  as  papists  and  Protestants  shall  unite  for  the 
exaltation  of  the  Sunday. 

The  prophecy  of  Revelation  13  declares  that  the  power 
represented  by  the  beast  with  lamb-like  horns  shall  cause 
"the  earth  and  them  which  dwell  therein"  to  worship  the 
papacy — there  symbolized  by  the  beast  "like  unto  a  leopard." 
The  beast  with  two  horns  is  also  to  say  "to  them  that  dwell 
on  the  earth,  that  they  should  make  an  image  to  the  beast; " 
and,  furthermore,  it  is  to  command  all,  "both  small  ami 
great,  rich  and  poor,  free  and  bond,"  to  receive  "the  mark 
of  the  beast."2  It  has  been  shown  that  the  United  Stales 
is  the  power  represented  by  the  beast  with  lamb-like  horns, 
and  that  this  prophecy  will  be  fulfilled  when  the  United 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  12.  a  Rev.  13:11-16. 


AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.  579 


States  shall  enforce  Sunday  observance,  which  Rome  claims 
as  the  special  acknowledgment  of  her  supremacy.  But  in 
this  homage  to  papacy  the  United  States  will  not  be  alone. 
The  influence  of  Rome  in  the  countries  that  once  acknowl- 
edged her  dominion,  is  still  far  from  being  destroyed.  And 
prophecy  foretells  a  restoration  of  her  power.  "  I  saw  one 
of  his  heads  as  it  were  wounded  to  death ;  and  his  deadly 
wound  was  healed;  and  all  the  world  wondered  after  the 
beast."1  The  infliction  of  the  deadly  wound  points  to  the 
abolition  of  the  papacy  in  1798.  After  this,  says  the  prophet, 
"His  deadly  wound  was  healed;  and  all  the  world  won- 
dered after  the  beast."  Paul  states  plainly  that  the  man 
of  sin  will  continue  until  the  second  advent.2  To  the  very 
close  of  time  he  will  carry  forward  his  work  of  deception. 
And  the  Revelator  declares,  also  referring  to  the  papacy, 
"All  that  dwell  upon  the  earth  shall  worship  him,  whose 
names  are  not  written  in  the  book  of  life." 3  In  both  the 
Old  and  the  New  World,  papacy  will  receive  homage  in  the 
honor  paid  to  the  Sunday  institution,  that  rests  solely  upon 
the  authority  of  the  Romish  Church. 

For  about  forty  years,  students  of  prophecy  in  the  United 
States  have  presented  this  testimony  to  the  world.  In  the 
events  now  taking  place  is  seen  a  rapid  advance  toward  the 
fulfillment  of  the  prediction.  With  Protestant  teachers  there 
is  the  same  claim  of  divine  authority  for  Sunday-keeping, 
and  the  same  lack  of  scriptural  evidence,  as  with  the  papist 
leaders  who  fabricated  miracles  to  supply  the  place  of  a 
command  from  God.  The  assertion  that  God's  judgments 
are  visited  upon  men  for  their  violation  of  the  Sunday- 
sabbath,  will  be  repeated ;  already  it  is  beginning  to  be  urged. 
And  a  movement  to  enforce  Sunday  observance  is  fast  gain- 
ing ground. 

Marvelous  in  her  shrewdness  and  cunning  is  the  Romish 
Church.  She  can  read  what  is  to  be.  She  bides  her  time, 

1  Rev.  13  : 3.  2  2  Thess.  2:8.  3  Rev.  13:8. 


580  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


seeing  that  the  Protestant  churches  are  paying  her  homage 
in  their  acceptance  of  the  false  Sabbath,  and  that  they  are 
preparing  to  enforce  it  by  the  very  means  which  she  herself 
employed  in  by-gone  days.  Those  who  reject  the  light  of 
truth  will  yet  seek  the  aid  of  this  self-styled  infallible  power 
to  exalt  an  institution  that  originated  with  her.  How  readily 
she  will  come  to  the  help  of  Protestants  in  this  work,  it  is 
not  difficult  to  conjecture.  Who  understands  better  than 
the  papal  leaders  how  to  deal  with  those  who  are  disobedient 
to  the  church  ? 

The  Koman  Church,  with  all  its  ramifications  throughout 
the  world,  forms  one  vast  organization,  under  the  control, 
and  designed  to  serve  the  interests,  of  the  papal  see.  Its 
millions  of  communicants,  in  every  country  on  the  globe, 
are  instructed  to  hold  themselves  as  bound  in  allegiance  to 
the  pope.  Whatever  their  nationality  or  their  government, 
they  are  to  regard  the  authority  of  the  church  as  above  all 
.other.  Though  they  may  take  the  oath  pledging  their  loy- 
alty to  the  State,  yet  back  of  this  lies  the  vow  of  obedience 
to  Rome,  absolving  them  from  every  pledge  inimical  to  her 
interests. 

Protestants  little  know  what  they  are  doing  when  they 
propose  to  accept  the  aid  of  Rome  in  the  work  of  Sunday 
exaltation.  While  they  are  bent  upon  the  accomplishment 
of  their  purpose,  Rome  is  aiming  to  re-establish  her  power, 
to  recover  her  lost  supremacy.  Let  history  testify  of  1  in- 
artful and  persistent  efforts  to  insinuate  herself  into  the  affairs 
of  nations;  and  having  gained  a  foothold,  to  further  her 
own  aims,  even  at  the  ruin  of  princes  and  people.  Romanism 
openly  puts  forth  the  claim  that  the  pope  "can  pronoun*  r 
sentences  and  judgments  in  contradiction  to  the  right  of 
nations,  to  the  law  of  God  and  man" * 

And  let  it  be  remembered,  it  is  the  boast  of  Rome  that  she 
never  changes.  The  principles  of  Gregory  A' II.  and  Inno- 
cent III.  are  still  the  principles  of  the  Romish  Church.  And 

iThe  "Decretalia." 


AIMS  OF  THE  PAPACY.  58 J 


had  she  but  the  power,  she  would  put  them  in  practice  with 
as  much  vigor  now  as  in  past  centuries.  Let  the  principle 
once  be  established  in  the  United  States,  that  the  church 
may  employ  or  control  the  power  of  the  State ;  that  religious 
observances  may  be  enforced  by  secular  laws;  in  short,  that 
the  authority  of  church  and  State  is  to  dominate  the  con- 
science, and  the  triumph  of  Rome  in  this  country  is  assured. 
God's  Word  has  given  warning  of  the  impending  danger; 
let  this  be  unheeded,  and  the  Protestant  world  will  learn 
what  the  purposes  of  Rome  really  are,  only  when  it  is  too 
late  to  escape  the  snare.  She  is  silently  growing  into  power. 
Her  doctrines  are  exerting  their  influence  in  legislative  halls, 
in  the  churches,  and  in  the  hearts  of  men.  She  is  piling 
up  her  lofty  and  massive  structures,  in  the  secret  recesses  of 
which  her  former  persecutions  will  be  repeated.  Stealthily 
and  unsuspectedly  she  is  strengthening  her  forces  to  further 
her  own  ends  when  the  time  shall  come  for  her  to  strike. 
All  that  she  desires  is  vantage-ground,  and  this  is  already 
being  given  her.  We  shall  soon  see  and  shall  feel  what  the 
purpose  of  the  Roman  element  is.  Whoever  shall  believe 
and  obey  the  Word  of  God  will  thereby  incur  reproach  and 
persecution. 


42 


CHAPTER    XXXVI. 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT— ITS  CAUSES. 

FROM  the  very  beginning  of  the  great  controversy  in 
Heaven,  it  has  been  Satan's  purpose  to  overthrow  the  law 
of  God.  It  was  to  accomplish  this  that  he  entered  upon  his 
rebellion  against  the  Creator;  and  though  he  was  cast  out 
of  Heaven,  he  has  continued  the  same  warfare  upon  the 
earth.  To  deceive  men,  and  thus  lead  them  to  transgress 
God's  law,  is  the  object  which  he  has  steadfastly  pursued. 
Whether  this  be  accomplished  by  casting  aside  the  law 
altogether,  or  by  rejecting  one  of  its  precepts,  the  result  will 
be  ultimately  the  same.  He  that  offends  "  in  one  point," 
manifests  contempt  for  the  whole  law;  his  influence  and 
example  are  on  the  side  of  transgression;  he  becomes  "guilty 
of  all."1 

In  seeking  to  cast  contempt  upon  the  divine  statutes, 
Satan  has  perverted  the  doctrines  of  the  Bible,  and  errors 
have  thus  become  incorporated  into  the  faith  of  thousands 
who  profess  to  believe  the  Scriptures.  The  last  great  con- 
flict between  truth  and  error  is  but  the  final  struggle  of  the 
long-standing  controversy  concerning  the  law  of  God.  Upon 
this  battle  we  are  now  entering, — a  battle  between  the  laws 
of  men  and  the  precepts  of  Jehovah,  between  the  religion 
of  the  Bible  and  the  religion  of  fable  and  tradition. 

The  agencies  which  will  unite  against  truth  and  right- 
eousness in  this  contest  are  now  actively  at  work.  God's 
holy  Word,  which  has  been  handed  down  to  us  at  such  a 
cost  of  suffering  and  blood,  is  but  little  valued.  The  Bible 
is  within  the  reach  of  all,  but  there  are  few  who  really 
accept  it  as  the  guide  of  life.  Infidelity  prevails  to  an 

1  James  2  : 10. 
(582) 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT.  583 

alarming  extent,  not  in  the  world  merely,  but  in  the  church. 
Many  have  come  to  deny  doctrines  which  are  the  very  pil- 
lars of  the  Christian  faith.  The  great  facts  of  creation  as 
presented  by  the  inspired  writers,  the  fall  of  man,  the  atone- 
ment, and  the  perpetuity  of  the  law  of  God,  are  practically 
rejected,  either  wholly  or  in  part,  by  a  large  share  of  the 
professedly  Christian  world.  Thousands  who  pride  them- 
selves upon  their  wisdom  and  independence  regard  it  an 
evidence  of  weakness  to  place  implicit  confidence  in  the 
Bible;  they  think  it  a  proof  of  superior  talent  and  learning 
to  cavil  at  the  Scriptures,  and  to  spiritualize  and  explain 
away  their  most  important  truths.  Many  ministers  are 
teaching  their  people,  and  many  professors  and  teachers  are 
instructing  their  students,  that  the  law  of  God  has  been 
changed  or  abrogated;  and  those  who  regard  its  require- 
ments as  still  valid,  to  be  literally  obeyed,  are  thought  to 
be  deserving  only  of  ridicule  or  contempt. 

In  rejecting  the  truth,  men  reject  its  Author.  In  tramp- 
ling upon  the  law  of  God,  they  deny  the  authority  of  the 
Lawgiver.  It  is  as  easy  to  make  an  idol  of  false  doctrines 
and  theories  as  to  fashion  an  idol  of  wood  or  stone.  By 
misrepresenting  the  attributes  of  God,  Satan  leads  men  to 
conceive  of  him  in  a  false  character.  With  many,  a  philo- 
sophical idol  is  enthroned  in  the  place  of  Jehovah;  while 
the  living  God,  as  he  is  revealed  in  his  Word,  in  Christ,  and 
in  the  works  of  creation,  is  worshiped  by  but  few.  Thou- 
sands deify  nature,  while  they  deny  the  God  of  nature. 
Though  in  a  different  form,  idolatry  exists  in  the  Christian 
world  to-day  as  verily  as  it  existed  among  ancient  Israel 
in  the  days  of  Elijah.  The  god  of  many  professedly  wise 
men,  of  philosophers,  poets,  politicians,  journalists, — the  god 
of  polished  fashionable  circles,  of  many  colleges  and  uni- 
versities, even  of  some  theological  institutions, — is  little  bet- 
ter than  Baal,  the  sun-god  of  Phenicia. 

No  error  accepted  by  the  Christian  world  strikes  more 
boldly  against  the  authority  of  Heaven,  none  is  more  di- 


584  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


rectly  opposed  to  the  dictates  of  reason,  none  is  more  per- 
nicious in  its  results,  than  the  modern  doctrine,  so  rapidly 
gaining  ground,  that  God's  law  is  no  longer  binding  upon 
men.  Every  nation  has  its  laws,  which  command  respect 
and  obedience;  no  government  could  exist  without  them; 
and  can  it  be  conceived  that  the  Creator  of  the  heavens  and 
the  earth  has  no  law  to  govern  the  beings  he  has  made  ? 
Suppose  that  prominent  ministers  were  publicly  to  teach 
that  the  statutes  which  govern  their  land  and  protect  the 
rights  of  its  citizens  were  not  obligatory, — that  they  re- 
stricted the  liberties  of  the  people,  and  therefore  ought  not 
to  be  obeyed ;  how  long  would  such  men  be  tolerated  in  the 
pulpit?  But  is  it  a  graver  offense  to  disregard  the  laws  of 
States  and  nations  than  to  trample  upon  those  divine  pre- 
cepts which  are  the  foundation  of  all  government? 

It  would  be  far  more  consistent  for  nations  to  abolish  their 
statutes,  and  permit  the  people  to  do  as  they  please,  than 
for  the  Ruler  of  the  universe  to  annul  his  law,  and  leave 
the  world  without  a  standard  to  condemn  the  guilty  or 
justify  the  obedient.  Would  we  know  the  result  of  making 
void  the  law  of  God?  The  experiment  has  been  tried. 
Terrible  were  the  scenes  enacted  in  France  when  atheism 
became  the  controlling  power.  It  was  then  demonstrated 
to  the  world  that  to  throw  off  the  restraints  which  God  has 
imposed  is  to  accept  the  rule  of  the  cruelest  of  tyrants. 
When  the  standard  of  righteousness  is  set  aside,  the  way 
is  open  for  the  prince  of  evil  to  establish  his  power  in  the 
earth. 

Wherever  the  divine  precepts  are  rejected,  sin  ceases  to 
appear  sinful,  or  righteousness  desirable.  Those  who  refuse 
to  submit  to  the  government  of  God  are  wholly  unfitted  to 
govern  themselves.  Through  their  pernicious  teachings, 
the  spirit  of  insubordination  is  implanted  in  the  hearts  of 
children  and  youth,  who  are  naturally  impatient  of  control; 
and  a  lawless,  licentious  state  of  society  results.  While 
scoffing  at  the  credulity  of  those  who  obey  the  requirements 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT.  58;") 


of  God,  the  multitudes  eagerly  accept  the  delusions  of  Satan. 
They  give  the  rein  to  lust,  and  practice  the  sins  which  have 
called  down  judgments  upon  the  heathen. 

Those  who  teach  the  people  to  lightly  regard  the  com- 
mandments of  God,  sow  disobedience,  to  reap  disobedience. 
Let  the  restraint  imposed  by  the  divine  law  be  wholly  cast 
aside,  and  human  laws  would  soon  be  disregarded.  Be- 
cause God  forbids  dishonest  practices,  coveting,  lying,  and 
defrauding,  men  are  ready  to  trample  upon  his  statutes  as 
a  hindrance  to  their  worldly  prosperity;  but  the  results  of 
banishing  these  precepts  would  be  such  as  they  do  not  antic- 
ipate. If  the  law  were  not  binding,  why  should  any  fear 
to  transgress?  Property  would  no  longer  be  safe.  Men 
would  obtain  their  neighbor's  possessions  by  violence;  and 
the  strongest  would  become  richest.  Life  itself  would  not 
be  respected.  The  marriage  vow  would  no  longer  stand  as 
a  sacred  bulwark  to  protect  the  family.  He  who  had  the 
power,  would,  if  he  desired,  take  his  neighbor's  wife  by  vio- 
lence. The  fifth  commandment  would  be  set  aside  with  the 
fourth.  Children  would  not  shrink  from  taking  the  life  of 
their  parents,  if  by  so  doing  they  could  obtain  the  desire  of 
their  corrupt  hearts.  The  civilized  world  would  become  a 
horde  of  robbers  and  assassins;  and  peace,  rest,  and  hap- 
piness would  be  banished  from  the  earth. 

Already  the  doctrine  that  men  are  released  from  obedience 
to  God's  requirements  has  weakened  the  force  of  moral  obli- 
gation, and  opened  the  flood-gates  of  iniquity  upon  the 
world.  Lawlessness,  dissipation,  and  corruption  are  sweep- 
ing in  upon  us  like  an  overwhelming  tide.  In  the  family, 
Satan  is  at  work.  His  banner  waves,  even  in  professedly 
Christian  households.  There  is  envy,  evil  surmising,  hypoc- 
risy, estrangement,  emulation,  strife,  betrayal  of  sacred  trusts, 
indulgence  of  lust.  The  whole  system  of  religious  prin- 
ciples and  doctrines,  which  should  form  the  foundation  and 
frame-work  of  social  life,  seems  to  be  a  tottering  mass,  ready 
to  fall  to  ruin.  The  vilest  of  criminals,  when  thrown  into 


.•*'  6  THE.  ORE  A  T  CON  TR  0  VERS  Y. 


prison  for  their  offenses,  are  often  made  the  recipients  of 
gifts  and  attentions,  as  if  they  had  attained  an  enviable  dis- 
tinction. Great  publicity  is  given  to  their  character  and 
crimes.  The  press  publishes  the  revolting  details  of  vice, 
thus  initiating  others  into  the  practice  of  fraud,  robbery,  and 
murder;  and  Satan  exults  in  the  success  of  his  hell i si i 
schemes.  The  infatuation  of  vice,  the  wanton  taking  of 
life,  the  terrible  increase  of  intemperance  and  iniquity  of 
every  order  and  degree,  should  arouse  all  who  fear  God,  to 
inquire  what  can  be  done  to  stay  the  tide  of  evil. 

Courts  of  justice  are  corrupt.  .Rulers  are  actuated  by 
desire  for  gain,  and  love  of  sensual  pleasure.  Intemperance 
has  beclouded  the  faculties  of  many,  so  that  Satan  lias 
almost  complete  control  of  them.  Jurists  are  perverted, 
bribed,  deluded.  Drunkenness  and  revelry,  passion,  envy, 
dishonesty  of  every  sort,  are  represented  among  those  v>ho 
administer  the  laws.  "Justice  standeth  afar  off;  for  truth 
is  fallen  in  the  street,  and  equity  cannot  enter." l 

The  iniquity  and  spiritual  darkness  that  prevailed  under 
the  supremacy  of  Rome  were  the  inevitable  result  of  Ler 
suppression  of  the  Scriptures;  but  where  is  to  be  found  the 
cause  of  the  widespread  infidelity,  the  rejection  of  the  law 
of  God,  and  the  consequent  corruption,  under  the  full  Maze 
of  gospel  light  in  an  age  of  religious  freedom  ?  Now  that 
Satan  can  no  longer  keep  the  world  under  his  control  by 
withholding  the  Scriptures,  he  resorts  to  other  means  to 
accomplish  the  same  object.  To  destroy  faith  in  the  Bible 
serves  his  purpose  as  well  as  to  destroy  the  Bible  itself.  By 
introducing  the  belief  that  God's  law  is  not  binding,  he  as 
effectually  leads  men  to  transgress  as  if  they  were  wholly 
ignorant  of  its  precepts.  And  now,  as  in  former  ages,  he 
has  worked  through  the  church  to  further  his  designs.  The 
religious  organizations  of  the  day  have  refused  to  listen  to 
unpopular  truths  plainly  brought  to  view  in  the  Scriptures, 
and  in  combating  them  they  have  adopted  interpretations 
and  taken  positions  which  have  sown  broadcast  the  seeds 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT.  587 


of  skepticism.  Clinging  to  the  papal  error  of  natural  im- 
mortality and  man's  consciousness  in  death,  they  have  re- 
jected the  only  defense  against  the  delusions  of  Spiritualism. 
The  doctrine  of  eternal  torment  has  led  many  to  disbelieve 
the  Bible.  And  as  the  claims  of  the  fourth  commandment 
are  urged  upon  the  people,  it  is  found  that  the  observance 
of  the  seventh-day  Sabbath  is  enjoined ;  and  as  the  only 
way  to  free  themselves  from  a  duty  which  they  are  un- 
willing to  perform,  .popular  teachers  declare  that  the  law 
of  God  is  no  longer  binding.  Thus  they  cast  away  the  law 
and  the  Sabbath  together.  As  the  work  of  Sabbatli  reform 
extends,  this  rejection  of  the  divine  law  to  avoid  the  claims 
of  the  fourth  commandment  will  become  well-nigh  universal. 
The  teachings  of  religious  leaders  have  opened  the  door  to 
infidelity,  to  Spiritualism,  and  to  contempt  for  God's  holy 
law,  and  upon  these  leaders  rests  a  fearful  responsibility  for 
the  iniquity  that  exists  in  the  Christian  world. 

Yet  this  very  class  put  forth  the  claim  that  the  fast- 
spreading  corruption  is  largely  attributable  to  the  desecra- 
tion of  the  so-called  "Christian  Sabbath,"  and  that  the  en- 
forcement of  Sunday  observance  would  greatly  improve  the 
morals  of  society.  This  claim  is  especially  urged  in  America, 
where  the  doctrine  of  the  true  Sabbath  has  been  most  widely 
preached.  Here  the  temperance  work,  one  of  the  most 
prominent  and  important  of  moral  reforms,  is  often  com- 
bined with  the  Sunday  movement,  and  the  advocates  of  the 
latter  represent  themselves  as  laboring  to  promote  the  highest 
interest  of  society;  and  those  who  refuse  to  unite  with  them 
are  denounced  as  the  enemies  of  temperance  and  reform. 
But  the  fact  that  a  movement  to  establish  error  is  connected 
with  a  work  which  is  in  itself  good,  is  not  an  argument  in 
favor  of  the  error.  We  may  disguise  poison  by  mingling 
it  with  wholesome  food,  but  we  do  not  change  its  nature. 
On  the  contrary,  it  is  rendered  more  dangerous,  as  it  is  more 
likely  to  be  taken  unawares.  It  is  one  of  Satan's  devices  to 
combine  with  falsehood  just  enough  truth  to  give  it  plan  si- 


088  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


bility.  The  leacbrs  of  the  Sunday  movement  may  advocate 
reforms  which  the  people  need,  principles  which  are  in  har- 
mony with  the  Bible,  yet  while  there  is  with  these  a  re- 
quirement which  is  contrary  to  God's  law,  his  servants  can- 
not unite  with  them.  Nothing  can  justify  them  in  setting 
aside  the  commandments  of  God  for  the  precepts  of  men. 

Through  the  two  great  errors,  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
and  Sunday  sacredness,  Satan  will  bring  the  people  under 
his  deceptions.  While  the  former  lays  the  foundation  of 
Spiritualism,  the  latter  creates  a  bond  of  sympathy  with 
Rome.  The  Protestants  of  the  United  States  will  be  fore- 
most in  stretching  their  hands  across  the  gulf  to  grasp  the 
hand  of  Spiritualism;  they  will  reach  over  the  abyss  to 
clasp  hands  with  the  Roman  power;  and  under  the  in- 
fluence of  this  threefold  union,  this  country  will  follow  in 
the  steps  of  Rome  in  trampling  on  the  rights  of  conscience. 

As  Spiritualism  more  closely  imitates  the  nominal  Chris- 
tianity of  the  day,  it  has  greater  power  to  deceive  and  en- 
snare. Satan  himself  is  converted,  after  the  modern  order 
of  things.  He  will  appear  in  the  character  of  an  angel  of 
light.  Through  the  agency  of  Spiritualism,  miracles  will 
be  wrought,  the  sick  will  be  healed,  and  many  undeniable 
wonders  will  be  performed.  And  as  the  spirits  will  profess 
faith  in  the  Bible,  and  manifest  respect  for  the  institutions 
of  the  church,  their  work  will  be  accepted  as  a  manifestation 
of  divine  power. 

The  line  of  distinction  between  professed  Christians  and 
the  ungodly  is  now  hardly  distinguishable.  Church-mem- 
bers love  what  the  world  loves,  and  are  ready  to  join  with 
them ;  and  Satan  determines  to  unite  them  in  one  body,  and 
thus  strengthen  his  cause  by  sweeping  all  into  the  ranks 
of  Spiritualism.  Papists,  who  boast  of  miracles  as  a  certain 
sign  of  the  true  church,  will  be  readily  deceived  by  this 
wonder-working  power;  and  Protestants,  having  cast  away 
the  shield  of  truth,  will  also  be  deluded.  Papists,  Protest- 
ants, and  worldlings  will  alike  accept  the  form  of  godliness 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT.  589 

without  the  power,  and  they  will  see  in  this  union  a  grand 
movement  for  the  conversion  of  the  world,  and  the  ushering 
in  of  the  long-expected  millennium. 

Through  Spiritualism,  Satan  appears  as  a  benefactor  of 
the  race,  healing  the  diseases  of  the  people,  and  professing 
to  present  a  new  and  more  exalted  system  of  religious  faith ; 
but  at  the  same  time  he  works  as  a  destroyer.  His  temp- 
tations are  leading  multitudes  to  ruin.  Intemperance  de- 
thrones reason;  sensual  indulgence,  strife,  and  bloodshed 
follow.  Satan  delights  in  war;  for  it  excites  the  worst  pas- 
sions of  the  soul,  and  then  sweeps  into  eternity  its  victims 
steeped  in  vice  and  blood.  It  is  his  object  to  incite  the 
nations  to  war  against  one  another;  for  he  can  thus  divert 
the  minds  of  the  people  from  the  work  of  preparation  to 
stand  in  the  day  of  God. 

Satan  works  through  the  elements  also  to  garner  his 
harvest  of  unprepared  souls.  He  has  studied  the  secrets 
of  the  laboratories  of  nature,  and  he  uses  all  his  power  to 
control  the  elements  as  far  as  God  allows.  When  he  was 
suffered  to  afflict  Job,  how  quickly  flocks  and  herds,  servants, 
houses,  children,  were  swept  away,  one  trouble  succeeding 
another  as  in  a  moment.  It  is  God  that  shields  his  creat- 
ures, and  hedges  them  in  from  the  power  of  the  destroyer. 
But  the  Christian  world  have  shown  contempt  for  the  law  of 
Jehovah;  and  the  Lord  will  do  just  what  he  has  declared 
that  he  would,  he  will  withdraw  his  blessings  from  the 
earth,  and  remove  his  protecting  care  from  those  who  are 
rebelling  against  his  law,  and  teaching  and  forcing  others 
to  do  the  same.  Satan  has  control  of  all  whom  God  does 
not  especially  guard.  He  will  favor  and  prosper  some,  in 
order  to  further  his  own  designs,  and  he  will  bring  trouble 
upon  others,  and  Jead  men  to  believe  that  it  is  God  who  is 
afflicting  them. 

While  appearing  to  the  children  of  men  as  a  great  phy- 
sician who  can  heal  all  their  maladies,  he  will  bring  disease 
and  disaster,  until  populous  cities  are  reduced  to  ruin  and 


590  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

desolation.  Even  now  ho  is  at  work.  In  accidents  and 
calamities  by  sea  and  by  land,  in  great  conflagrations,  in 
fierce  tornadoes  and  terrific  hail-storms,  in  tempests,  floods, 
cyclones,  tidal  waves,  and  earthquakes,  in.  every  place  and 
in  a  thousand  forms,  Satan  is  exercising  his  power.  He 
sweeps  away  the  ripening  harvest,  and  famine  and  distress 
follow.  He  imparts  to  the  air  a  deadly  taint,  and  thousands 
perish  by  the  pestilence.*  These  visitations  are  to  become 
more  and  more  frequent  and  disastrous.  Destruction  will 
be  upon  both  man  and  beast.  "  The  earth  mourneth  and 
fadeth  away,"  "the  haughty  people  ...  do  languish. 
The  earth  also  is  defiled  under  the  inhabitants  thereof;  be- 
cause they  have  transgressed  the  laws,  changed  the  ordi- 
nance, broken  the  everlasting  covenant."1 

And  then  the  great  deceiver  will  persuade  men  that  those 
who  serve  God  are  causing  these  evils.  The  class  that  have 
provoked  the  displeasure  of  Heaven  will  charge  all  their 
troubles  upon  those  whose  obedience  to  God's  command- 
ments is  a  perpetual  reproof  to  transgressors.  It  will  be 
declared  that  men  are  offending  God  by  the  violation  of  the 
Sunday-sabbath,  that  this  sin  has  brought  calamities  wliich 
will  not  cease  until  Sunday  observance  shall  be  strictly  en- 
krced,  and  that  those  who  present  the  claims  of  the  fourth 
commandment,  thus  destroying  reverence  for  Sunday,  are 
trou biers  of  the  people,  preventing  their  restoration  to  divine 
favor  and  temporal  prosperity.  Thus  the  accusation  urged 
of  old  against  the  servant  of  God  will  be  repeated,  and  upon 
grounds  equally  well  established.  "And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  Ahal>  saw  Elijah,  that  Ahab  said  unto  him,  Art  thou 
he  that  troubleth  Israel?  And  he  answered,  I  have  not 
troubled  Israel;  but  thou,  and  thy  father's  house,  in  that  ye 
have  forsaken  the  commandments  of  the  Lord,  and  thou 
hast  followed  Baalim."^  As  the  wrath  of  the  people  shall 
be  exeiled  by  i'alse  charges,  they  will  pursue  a  eourse  toward 
( lod's  ambassadors  very  similar  to  that  which  apostate  Israel 
pursued  toward  Elijah. 

Uaa.  24:4.  5.  '1  Kings  18:17,  18. 


THE  IMPENDING  CONFLICT.  591 


The  miracle-working  power  manifested  through  Spirit- 
ualism will  exert  its  influence  against  those  who  choose  to 
obey  God  rather  than  men.  Communications  from  the 
spirits  will  declare  that  God  has  sent  them  to  convince  the 
rejecters  of  Sunday  of  their  error,  affirming  that  the  laws 
of  the  land  should  be  obeyed  as  the  law  of  God.  They  will 
lament  the  great  wickedness  in  the  world,  and  second  the 
testimony  of  religious  teachers,  that  the  degraded  state  of 
morals  is  caused  by  the  desecration  of  Sunday.  Great  will 
be  the  indignation  excited  against  all  who  refuse  to  accept . 
their  testimony. 

Satan's  policy  in  this  final  conflict  with  God's  people  is 
the  same  that  he  employed  in  the  opening  of  the  great  con- 
troversy in  Heaven.  He  professed  to  be  seeking  to  promote 
the  stability  of  the  divine  government,  while  secretly  bend- 
ing every  effort  to  secure  its  overthrow.  And  the  very  work 
which  he  was  thus  endeavoring  to  accomplish,  he  charged 
upon  the  loyal  angels.  The  same  policy  of  deception  has 
marked  the  history  of  the  Romish  Church.  It  has  professed 
to  act  as  the  vicegerent  of  Heaven,  while  seeking  to  exalt 
itself  above  God,  and  to  change  his  law.  Under  the  rule 
of  Rome,  those  who  suffered  death  for  their  fidelity  to  the 
gospel  were  denounced  as  evil-doers;  they  were  declared  to 
be  in  league  with  Satan;  and  every  possible  means  was 
employed  to  cover  them  with  reproach,  to  cause  them  to 
appear,  in  the  eyes  of  the  people,  and  even  to  themselves, 
as  the  vilest  of  criminals.  So  it  will  be  now.  While  Satan 
seeks  to  destroy  those  who  honor  God's  law  he  will  cause 
them  to  be  accused  as  law-breakers,  as  men  who  are  dis- 
honoring God,  and  bringing  judgments  upon  the  world. 

God  never  forces  the  will  or  the  conscience;  but  Satan's 
constant  resort — to  gain  control  of  those  whom  he  cannot 
otherwise  seduce — is  compulsion  by  cruelty.  Through  fear 
or  force  he  endeavors  to  rule  the  conscience,  and  to  secure 
homage  to  himself.  To  accomplish  this,  he  works  through 
both  religious  and  secular  authorities,  moving  them  to  the 
enforcement  of  human  laws  in  defiance  of  the  law  of  God. 


592  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Those  who  honor  the  Bible  Sabbath  will  be  denounced 
as  enemies  of  law  and  order,  as  breaking  down  the  moral 
restraints  of  society,  causing  anarchy  and  corruption,  and 
calling  down  the  judgments  of  God  upon  the  earth.  Their 
conscientious  scruples  will  be  pronounced  obstinacy,  stub- 
bornness, and  contempt  of  authority.  They  will  be  accused 
of  disaffection  toward  the  government.  Ministers  who  deny 
the  obligation  of  the  divine  law  will  present  from  the  pulpit 
the  duty  of  yielding  obedience  to  the  civil  authorities  as 
ordained  of  God.  In  legislative  -halls  and  courts  of  justice, 
commandment-keepers  will  be  misrepresented  and  con- 
demned. A  false  coloring  will  be  given  to  their  words; 
the  worst  construction  will  be  put  upon  their  motives. 

As  the  Protestant  churches  reject  the  clear,  scriptural 
arguments  in  defense  of  God's  law,  they  will  long  to  silence 
those  whose  faith  they  cannot  overthrow  by  the  Bible. 
Though  they  blind  their  own  eyes  to  the  fact,  they  are  now 
adopting  a  course  which  will  lead  to  the  persecution  of 
those  who  conscientiously  refuse  to  do  what  the  rest  of  the 
Christian  world  are  doing,  and  acknowledge  the  claims  of 
the  papal  Sabbath. 

The  dignitaries  of  church  and  State  will  unite  to  bribe, 
persuade,  or  compel  all  classes  to  honor  the  Sunday.  The 
lack  of  divine  authority  will  be  supplied  by  oppressive  en- 
actments. Political  corruption  is  destroying  love  of  justice 
and  regard  for  truth;  and  even  in  free  America,  rulers  and 
legislators,  in  order  to  secure  public  favor,  will  yield  to  the 
popular  demand  for  a  law  enforcing  Sunday  observance. 
Liberty  of  conscience,  which  has  cost  so  great  a  sacrifice, 
will  no  longer  be  respected.  In  the  soon-coming  conflict 
we  shall  see  exemplified  the  prophet's  words:  "The  dragon 
was  wroth  with  the  woman,  and  went  to  make  war  with  the 
remnant  of  her  seed,  which  keep  the  commandments  of  God, 
and  have  the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ." l 

'Rev.  12:17. 


CHAPTER    XXXVII. 


THE   SCRIPTURES   A   SAFEGUARD. 

"  To  THE  law  and  to  the  testimony.  If  they  speak  not 
according  to  this  word, 'it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in 
them." l  The  people  of  God  are  directed  to  the  Scriptures  as 
their  safeguard  against  the  influence  of  false  teachers  and 
the  delusive  power  of  spirits  of  darkness.  Satan  employs 
every  possible  device  to  prevent  men  from  obtaining  a 
knowledge  of  the  Bible;  for  its  plain  utterances  reveal  his 
deceptions.  At  every  revival  of  God's  work,  the  prince  of 
evil  is  aroused  to  more  intense  activity ;  he  is  now  putting 
forth  his  utmost  efforts  for  a  final  struggle  against  Christ  and 
his  followers.  The  last  great  delusion  is  soon  to  open  before 
us.  Antichrist  is  to  perform  his  marvelous  works  in  our 
sight.  So  closely  will  the  counterfeit  resemble  the  true,  that 
it  will  be  impossible  to  distinguish  between  them  except  by 
the  Holy  Scriptures.  By  their  testimony  every  statement 
and  every  miracle  must  be  tested. 

Those  who  endeavor  to  obey  all  the  commandments  of 
God  will  be  opposed  and  derided.  They  can  stand  only  in 
God.  In  order  to  endure  the  trial  before  them, -they  must 
understand  the  will  of  God  as  revealed  in  his  Word ;  they 
can  honor  him  only  as  they  have  a  right  conception  of  his 
character,  government,  and  purposes,  and  act  in  accordance 
with  them.  None  but  those  who  have  fortified  the  mind 
with  the  truths  of  the  Bible  will  stand  through  the  last  great 
conflict.  To  every  soul  will  come  the  searching  test,  Shall  I 
obey  God  rather  than  men  ?  The  decisive  hour  is  even  now 
at  hand.  Are  our  feet  planted  on  the  rock  of  God's  iminu- 

J  Isa.  8  :  20. 

X593) 


594  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


table  Word?  Are  we  prepared  to  stand  firm  in  defense  of 
the  commandments  of  God  and  the  faith  of  Jesus  ? 

Before  his  crucifixion,  the  Saviour  explained  to  his  disci- 
ples that  he  was  to  be  put  to  death,  and  to  rise  again  from 
the  tomb ;  and  angels  were  present  to  impress  his  words  on 
minds  and  hearts.  But  the  disciples  were  looking  for  tem- 
poral deliverance  from  the  Roman  yoke,  and  they  could  not 
tolerate  the  thought  that  He  in  whom  all  their  hopes  cen- 
tered should  suffer  an  ignominious  death.  The  words  which 
they  needed  to  remember  were  banished  from  their  minds; 
and  when  the  time  of  trial  came,  it  found  them  unprepared. 
The  death  of  Jesus  as  fully  destroyed  their  hopes  as  if  he 
had  not  forewarned  them.  So  in  the  prophecies  the  future 
is  opened  before  us  as  plainly  as  it  was  opened  to  the  disci- 
ples by  the  words  of  Christ.  The  events  connected  with  the 
close  of  probation  and  the  work  of  preparation  for  the  time 
of  trouble,  are  clearly  presented.  But  multitudes  have  no 
more  understanding  of  these  important  truths  than  if  they 
had  never  been  revealed.  Satan  watches  to  catch  away 
every  impression  that  would  make  them  wise  unto  salvation, 
and  the  time  of  trouble  will  find  them  unready. 

When  God  sends  to  men  warnings  so  important  that  they 
are  represented  as  proclaimed  by  holy  angels  flying  in  the 
midst  of  heaven,  he  requires  every  person  endowed  with  rea- 
soning powers  to  heed  the  message.  The  fearful  judgments 
denounced  against  the  worship  of  the  beast  and  his  imago,1 
should  lead  all  to  a  diligent  study  of  the  prophecies  to  learn 
what  the  mark  of  the  beast  is,  and  how  they  are  to  avoid 
receiving  it.  But  the  masses  of  the  people  turn  away  their 
ears  from  hearing  the  truth,  and  are  turned  unto  fables. 
The  apostle  Paul  declared,  looking  down  to  the  last  days, 
"  The  time  will  come  when  they  will  not  endure  sound  doc- 
trine." 2  That  time  has  fully  come.  The  multitudes  do  not 
want  Bible  truth,  because  it  interferes  with  the  desires  of  the 
sinful,  world-loving  heart;  and  Satan  supplies  the  deceptions 
which  they  love. 

'ttev.  H  :'.»   11.  '2  Tim.  4  :  3. 


THE  SCRIPTURES  A  SAFEGUARD.  595 

But  God  will  have  a  people  upon  the  earth  to  maintain  the 
Bible,  and  the  Bible  only,  as  the  standard  of  all  doctrines, 
and  the  basis  of  all  reforms.  The  opinions  of  learned  men, 
the  deductions  of  science,  the  creeds  or  decisions  of  ecclesi- 
astical councils,  as  numerous  and  discordant  as  are  the 
churches  which  they  represent,  the  voice  of  the  majority, — 
not  one  or  all  of  these  should  be  regarded  as  evidence  for  or 
against  any  point  of  religious  faith.  Before  accepting  any 
doctrine  or  precept,  we  should  demand  a  plain  "  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  "  in  its  support. 

Satan  is  constantly  endeavoring  to  attract  attention  to  man 
in  the  place  of  God.  He  leads  the  people  to  look  to  bishops, 
to  pastors,  to  professors  of  theology,  as  their  guides,  instead  of 
searching  the  Scriptures  to  learn  their  duty  for  themselves. 
Then,  by  controlling  the  minds  of  these  leaders,  he  can  in- 
fluence the  multitudes  according  to  his  will. 

When  Christ  came  to  speak  the  words  of  life,  the  common 
people  heard  him  gladly ;  and  many,  even  of  the  priests  and 
rulers,  believed  on  him.  But  the  chief  of  the  priesthood 
and.  the  leading  men  of  the  nation  were  determined  to  con- 
demn and  repudiate  his  teachings.  Though  they  were 
baffled  in  all  their  efforts  to  find  accusations  against  him, 
though  they  could  not  but  feel  the  influence  of  the  divine 
power  and  wisdom  attending  his  words,  yet  they  encased 
themselves  in  prejudice;  they  rejected  the  clearest  evidence 
of  his  Messiahship,  lest  they  should  be  forced  to  become  his 
disciples.  These  opponents  of  Jesus  were  men  whom  the 
people  had  been  taught  from  infancy  to  reverence,  to  whose 
authority  they  had  been  accustomed  implicitly  to  bow. 
"  How  is  it,"  they  asked,  "  that  our  rulers  and  learned  scribes 
do  not  believe  on  Jesus  ?  Would  not  these  pious  men  re- 
ceive him  if  he  were  the  Christ  ?  "  It  was  the  influence  of 
such  teachers  that  led  the  Jewish  nation  to  reject  their 
Redeemer. 

The  spirit  which  actuated  those  priests  and  rulers  is  still 
manifested  by  many  who  make  a  high  profession  of  piety. 
43 


596  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

They  refuse  to  examine  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures  con- 
cerning the  special  truths  for  this  time..  They  point  to  their 
own  numbers,  wealth,  and  popularity,  and  look  with  con- 
tempt upon  the  advocates  of  truth  as  few,  poor,  and  unpop- 
ular, having  a  faith  that  separates  them  from  the  world. 

Christ  foresaw  that  the  undue  assumption  of  authority 
indulged  by  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  would  not  cease  with 
the  dispersion  of  the  Jews.  He  had  a  prophetic  view  of  the 
work  of  exalting  human  authority  to  rule  the  conscience, 
which  has  been  so  terrible  a  curse  to  the  church  in  all  ages. 
And  his  fearful  denunciations  of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees, 
and  his  warnings  to  the  people  not  to  follow  these  blind 
leaders,  were  placed  on  record  as  an  admonition  to  future 
generations. 

The  Romish  Church  reserves  to  the  clergy  the  right  to 
interpret  the  Scriptures.  On  the  ground  that  ecclesiastics 
alone  are  competent  to  explain  God's  Word,  it  is  withheld 
from  the  common  people..  Though  the  Reformation  gave 
the  Scriptures  to  all,  yet  the  self-same  principle  which  was 
maintained  by  Rome  prevents  multitudes  in  Protestant 
Churches  from  searching  the  Bible  for  themselves.  They  are 
taught  to  accept  its  teachings  as  interpreted  by  the  church; 
and  there  are  thousands  who  dare  receive  nothing,  however 
plainly  revealed  in  Scripture,  that  is  contrary  to  their  creed, 
or  the  established  teaching  of  their  church. 

Notwithstanding  the  Bible  is  full  of  warnings  against  false 
teachers,  many  are  ready  thus  to  commit  the  keeping  of 
their  souls  to  the  clergy.  There  are  to-day  thousands  of 
professors  of  religion  who  can  give  no  other  reason  for  points 
of  faith  which  they  hold  than  that  they  were  so  instructed 
by  their  religious  leaders.  They  pass  by  the  Saviour's  teach- 
ings almost  unnoticed,  and  place  implicit  confidence  in  the 
words  of  the  ministers.  But  are  ministers  infallible  ?  How 
can  we  trust  our  souls  to  their  guidance  unless  we  know 
from  God's  Word  that  they  are  light-l><>;uvrs?  A  lack  of 
moral  courage  to  step  aside  from  the  beaten  track  of  the 


THE  SCRIPTURES  A  SAFEGUARD.  597 


world,  leads  many  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  learned  men; 
and  by  their  reluctance  to  investigate  for  themselves,  they 
are  becoming  hopelessly  fastened  in  the  chains  of  error. 
They  see  that  the  truth  for  this  time  is  plainly  brought  to 
view  in  the  Bible,  and  they  feel  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
attending  its  proclamation;  yet  they  allow  the  opposition 
of  the  clergy  to  turn  them  from  the  light.  Though  reason 
and  conscience  are  convinced,  these  deluded  souls  dare  not 
think  differently  from  the  minister;  and  their  individual 
judgment,  their  eternal  interests,  are  sacrificed  to  the  un- 
belief, the  pride  and  prejudice,  of  another. 

Many  are  the  ways  by  which  Satan  works  through  human 
influence  to  bind  his  captives.  He  secures  multitudes  to 
himself  by  attaching  them  by  the  silken  cords  ofk  affection 
to  those  who  are  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ.  Whatever 
this  attachment  may  be,  parental,  filial',  conjugal,  or  social, 
the  effect  is  the  same;  the  opposers  of  truth  exert  their 
power  to  control  the  conscience,  and  the  souls  held  under 
their  sway  have  not  sufficient  courage  or  independence  to 
obey  their  own  convictions  of  duty. 

The  truth  and  the  glory  of  God  are  inseparable;  it  is 
impossible  for  us,  with  the  Bible  within  our  reach,  to  honor 
God  by  erroneous  opinions.  Many  claim  that  it  matters 
not  what  one  believes,  if  his  life  is  only  right.  But  the  life 
is  moulded  by  the  faith.  If  light  and  truth  are  within  our 
reach,  and  we  neglect  to  improve  the  privilege  of  hearing 
and  seeing  it,  we  virtually  reject  it;  we  are  choosing  dark- 
ness rather  than  light. 

"  There  is  a  way  that  seemeth  right  unto  a  man,  but  the 
end  thereof  are  the  ways  of  death." l  Ignorance  is  no  ex- 
cuse for  error  or  sin,  when  there  is  every  opportunity  to 
know  the  will  of  God.  A  man  is  traveling,  and  comes  to 
a  place  where  there  are  several  roads,  and  a  guide-board 
indicating  where  each  one  leads.  If  he  disregards  the  guide- 
board,  and  takes  whichever  road  seems  to  him  to  be  right, 

1  Prov.  16  : 25. 


598  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


he  may  be  ever  so  sincere,  but  will  in  all  probability  find 
himself  on  the  wrong  road. 

God  has  given  us  his  Word  that  we  may  become  ac- 
quainted with  its  teachings,  and  know  for  ourselves  what 
he  requires  of  us.  When  the  lawyer  came  to  Jesus  with 
the  inquiry,  "What  shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal  life?"  the 
Saviour  referred  him  to  the  Scriptures,  saying,  "  What  is 
written  in  the  law  ?  how  readest  thou?"  Ignorance  will  not 
excuse  young  or  old,  or  release  them  from  the  punishment 
due  for  the  transgression  of  God's  law,  because  there  is  in 
their  hands  a  faithful  presentation  of  that  law  and  of  its 
principles  and  its  claims.  It  is  not  enough  to  have  good 
intentions;  it  is  not  enough  to  do  what  a  man  thinks  is  right, 
or  what  the  minister  tells  him  is  right.  His  soul's  salvation 
is  at  stalte,  and  he  should  search  the  Scriptures  for  himself. 
However  strong  may  be  *his  convictions,  however  confident 
he  may  be  that  the  minister  knows  what  is  truth,  this  is  not 
his  foundation.  He  has  a  chart  pointing  out  every  way- 
mark  on  the  heavenward  journey,  and  he  ought  not  to 
guess  at  anything. 

It  is  the  first  and  highest  duty  of  every  rational  being  to 
learn  from  the  Scriptures  what  is  truth,  and  then  to  walk 
in  the  light,  and  encourage  others  to  follow  his  example. 
We  should  day  by  day  study  the  Bible  diligently,  weighing 
every  thought,  and  comparing  scripture  with  scripture. 
With  divine  help,  we  are  to  form  our  opinions  for  our- 
selves, as  we  are  to  answer  for  ourselves  before  God. 

The  truths  most  plainly  revealed  in  the  Bible  have  been 
involved  in  doubt  and  darkness  by  learned  men,  who,  with 
a  pretense  of  great  wisdom,  teach  that  the  Scriptures  have 
a  mystical,  a  secret,  spiritual  meaning  not  apparent  in  tin- 
language  employed.  These  men  are  false  teachers.  It  was 
to  such  a  class  that  Jesus  declared,  "  Ye  know  not  the  Script- 
ures, neither  the  power  of  God."1  The  language  of  the 
Bible  should  be  explained  according  to  its  obvious  meaning, 

'Mark  12:24. 


THE  SCRIPTURES  A  SAFEGUARD.  599 

unless  a  symbol  or  figure  is  employed.  Christ  has  given  the 
promise,  "  If  any  man  will  do  His  will,  he  shall  know  of  the 
doctrine."1  If  men  would  but  take  the  Bible  as  it  reads, 
if  there  were  no  false  teachers  to  mislead  and  confuse  their 
minds,  a  work  would  be  accomplished  that  would  make 
angels  glad,  and  that  would  bring  into  the  fold  of  Christ 
thousands  upon  thousands  who  are  now  wandering  in  error. 

\\V  should  exert  all  the  powers  of  the  mind  in  the  study 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  should  task  the  understanding  to  com- 
prehend, as  far  as  mortals  can,  the  deep  things  of  God;  yet 
we  must  not  forget  that  the  docility  and  submission  of  a 
child  is  the  true  spirit  of  the  learner.  Scriptural  difficulties 
can  never  be  mastered  by  the  same  methods  that  are  em- 
ployed in  grappling  with  philosophical  problems.  We 
should  not  engage  in  the  study  of  the  Bible  with  that  self- 
reliance  with  which  so  many  enter  the  domains  of  science, 
but  with  a  prayerful  dependence  upon  God,  and  a  sincere 
desire  to  learn  his  will.  We  must  come  with  a  humble  and 
teachable  spirit  to  obtain  knowledge  from  the  great  I  AM. 
Otherwise,  evil  angels  will  so  blind  our  minds  and  harden 
our  hearts  that  we  shall  not  be  impressed  by  the  truth. 

Many  a  portion  of  Scripture  which  learned  men  pro- 
nounce a  mystery,  or  pass  over  as  unimportant,  is  full  of 
comfort  and  instruction  to  him  who  has  been  taught  in  the 
school  of  Christ.  One  reason  why  many  theologians  have 
no  clearer  understanding  of  God's  Word  is,  they  close  their 
eyes  to  truths  which  they  do  not  wish  to  practice.  An  un- 
derstanding of  Bible  truth  depends  not  so  much  on  the 
power  of  intellect  brought  to  the  search  as  on  the  singleness 
of  purpose,  the  earnest  longing  after  righteousness. 

The  Bible  should  never  be  studied  without  prayer.  The 
Holy  Spirit  alone  can  cause  us  to  feel  the  importance  of 
those  things  easy  to  be  understood,  or  prevent  us  from  wrest- 
ing truths  difficult  of  comprehension.  It  is  the  office  of 
heavenly  angels  to  prepare  the  heart  to  so  comprehend  God's 

i  John  7  : 17. 


600  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Word  that  we  shall  be  charmed  with  its  beauty,  admonished 
by  its  warnings,  or  animated  and  strengthened  by  its  prom- 
ises. We  should  make  the  psalmist's  petition  our  own: 
"  Open  thou  mine  eyes,  that  I  may  behold  wondrous  things 
out  of  thy  law."1  Temptations  often  appear  irresistible 
because,  through  neglect  of  prayer  and  the  study  of  the 
Bible,  the  tempted  one  cannot  readily  remember  God's 
promises  and  meet  Satan  with  the  Scripture  weapons.  But 
angels  are  round  about  those  who  are  willing  to  be  taught 
in  divine  things;  and  in  the  time  of  great  necessity,  they  will 
bring  to  their  remembrance  the  very  truths  which  are  needed. 
Thus  "  when  the  enemy  shall  come  in  like  a  flood,  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  shall  lift  up  a  standard  against  him." 2 

Jesus  promised  his  disciples,  "The  Comforter,  the  Holy 
Ghost,  whom  the  Father  will  send  in  my  name,  he  shall 
teach  you  all  things,  and  bring  all  things  to  your  remem- 
brance, whatsoever  I  have  said  unto  you."3  But  the  teach- 
ings of  Christ  must  previously  have  been  stored  in  the  mind, 
in  order  for  the  Spirit  of  God  to  bring  them  to  our  remem- 
brance in  the  time  of  peril.  "Thy  Word  have  I  hid  in 
mine  heart,"  said  David,  "  that  I  might  not  sin  against  thee." 4 

All  who  value  their  eternal  interests  should  be  on  their 
guard  against  the  inroads  of  skepticism.  The  very  pillars 
of  truth  will  be  assailed.  It  is  impossible  to  keep  beyond 
the  reach  of  the  sarcasms  and  sophisms,  the  insidious  and 
pestilent  teachings,  of  modem  infidelity.  Satan  adapts  his 
temptations  to  all  classes.  He  assails  the  illiterate  with  a. 
jest  or  sneer,  while  he  meets  the  educated  with  scientific 
objections  and  philosophical  reasoning,  alike  calculated  to 
excite  distrust  or  contempt  of  the  Scriptures.  Even  youth 
of  little  experience  presume  to  insinuate  doubts  concerning 
the  fundamental  principles  of  Christianity.  And  this  youth- 
ful infidelity,  shallow  as  it  is,  has  its  influence.  Many  are 
thus  led  to  jest  at  the  faith  of  their  fathers,  and  to  do  despite 
to  the  Spirit  of  grace.5  Many  a  life  that  promised  to  be  an 

'Ps.  119:18.         'I8a.59:19.         3Johnl4:26.         *  Ps.  119:11. 
5Heb.  10:29. 


THE  SCRIPTURES  A  SAFEGUARD.  601 

honor  to  God  and  a  blessing  to  the  world,  has  been  blighted 
by  the  foul  breath  of  infidelity.  All  who  trust  to  the  boast- 
ful decisions  of  human  reason,  and  imagine  that  they  can 
explain  divine  mysteries,  and  arrive  at  truth  unaided  by 
the  wisdom  of  God,  are  entangled  in  the  snare  of  Satan. 

We  are  living  in  the  most  solemn  period  of  this  world's 
history.  The  destiny  of  earth's  teeming  multitudes  is  about 
to  be  decided.  Our  own  future  well-being,  and  also  the 
salvation  of  other  souls,  depends  upon  the  course  which  we 
now  pursue.  We  need  to  be  guided  by  the  Spirit  of  truth. 
Every  follower  of  Christ  should  earnestly  inquire,  "  Lord, 
what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  ?  "  We  need  to  humble  our- 
selves before  the  Lord,  with  fasting  and  prayer,  and  to 
meditate  much  upon  his  Word,  especially  upon  the  scenes 
of  the  Judgment.  We  should  now  seek  a  deep  and  living 
experience  in  the  things  of  God.  We  have  not  a  moment 
to  lose.  Events  of  vital  importance  are  taking  place  around 
us;  we  are  on  Satan's  enchanted  ground.  Sleep  not,  sen- 
tinels of  God ;  the  foe  is  lurking  near,  ready  at  any  moment, 
should  you  become  lax  and  drowsy,  to  spring  upon  you  and. 
make  you  his  prey. 

Many  are  deceived  as  to  their  true  condition  before  God. 
They  congratulate  themselves  upon  the  wrong  acts  which 
they  do  not  commit,  and  forget  to  enumerate  the  good  and 
noble  deeds  which  God  requires  of  them,  but  which  they 
have  neglected  to  perform.  It  is  not  enough  that'they  are 
trees  in  the  garden  of  God.  They  are  to  answer  his  expec- 
tation by  bearing  fruit.  He  holds  them  accountable  for 
their  failure  to  accomplish  all  the  good  which  they  could 
have  done,  through  his  grace  strengthening  them.  In  the 
books  of  Heaven  they  are  registered  as  cumberers  of  the 
ground.  Yet  the  case  of  even  this  class  is  not  utterly  hope- 
less. With  those  who  have  slighted  God's  mercy  and  abused 
his  grace,  the  heart  of  long-suffering  love  yet  pleads.  "  Where- 
fore he  saith,  Awake,  thou  that  sleepest,  and  arise  from  the 
dead,  and  Christ  shall  give  thee  light.  See  then  that  ye 


602  THi:   GUKAT 


walk  circumspectly,  .  .  .  redeeming  the  time,  because 
the  days  are  evil."  l 

AVhen  the  testing  time  shall  come,  those  who  have  made 
God's  Word  their  rule  of  life  will  be  revealed.  In  summer 
there  is  no  noticeable  difference  between  evergreens  and 
other  trees;  but  when  the  blasts  of  winter  come,  the  ever- 
greens remain  unchanged,  while  other  trees  are  stripped  of 
their  foliage.  So  the  false-hearted  professor  may  not  now 
be  distinguished  from  the  real  Christian,  but  the  time  is  just 
upon  us  when  the  difference  will  be  apparent.  Let  oppo- 
sition arise,  let  bigotry  and  intolerance  again  bear  sway,  let 
persecution  be  kindled,  and  the  half-hearted  and  hypocritical 
will  waver  and  yield  the  faith;  but  the  true  Christian  will 
stand  firm  as  a  rock,  his  faith  stronger,  his  hope  brighter, 
than  in  days  of  prosperity. 

Says  the  psalmist  :  "  Thy  testimonies  are  my  meditation." 
"Through  thy  precepts  I  get  understanding;  therefore  I 
hate  every  false  way."  2 

"Happy  is  the  man  that  findeth  wisdom."  "He  shall  be 
as  a  tree  planted  by  the  waters,  and  that  spreadeth  out  her 
roots  by  the  river,  and  shall  not  see  when  heat  cometh,  but 
her  leaf  shall  be  green;  and  shall  not  be  careful  in  the  year 
of  drought,  neither  shall  cease  from  yielding  fruit."3 

1  Eph.  5  :  14-16.       »  Ps,  1  19  :  99,  104.       3  Prov.  3:13;  Jer.  17:8. 


CHAPTER    XXXVIII. 


THE    FINAL   WARNING. 

"  I  SAW  another  angel  come  down  from  Heaven,  having 
great  power;  and  the  earth  was  lightened  with  his  glory. 
And  he  cried  mightily  with  a  strong  voice,  saying,  Babylon 
the  great  is  fallen,  is  fallen,  and  is  become  the  habitation 
of  devils,  and  the  hold  of  every  foul  spirit,  and  a  cage  of 
every  unclean  and  hateful  bird."  "  And  I  heard  another 
voice  from  Heaven,  saying,  Come  out  of  her,  my  people, 
that  ye  be  not  partakers  of  her  sins,  and  that  ye  receive  not 
of  her  plagues." l 

This  scripture  points  forward  to  a  time  when  the  an- 
nouncement of  the  fall  of  Babylon,  as  made  by  the  second 
angel 2  of  Revelation  14,  is  to  be  repeated,  with  the  addi- 
tional mention  of  the  corruptions  which  have  been  entering 
the  various  organizations  that  constitute  Babylon,  since  that 
message  was  first  given,  in  the  summer  of  1844.  A  terrible 
condition  of  the  religious  world  is  here  described.  With 
every  rejection  of  truth,  the  minds  of  the  people  will  become 
darker,  their  hearts  more  stubborn,  until  they  are  entrenched 
in  an  infidel  hardihood.  In  defiance  of  the  warnings  which 
God  has  given,  they  will  continue  to  trample  upon  one  of 
the  precepts  of  the  decalogue,  until  they  are  led  to  persecute 
those  who  hold  it  sacred.  Christ  is  set  at  naught  in  the 
contempt  placed  upon  his  Word  and  his  people.  As  the 
teachings  of  Spiritualism  are  accepted  by  the  churches,  the 
restraint  imposed  upon  the  carnal  heart  is  removed,  and  the 
profession  of  religion  will  become  a  cloak  to  conceal  the 
basest  iniquity.  A  belief  in  spiritual  manifestations  opens 

1  Rev.  18  : 1,  2,  4.  'Rev.  14:8. 

(603) 


004  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

the  door  to  seducing  spirits,  and  doctrines  of  devils,  and  thus 
the  influence  of  evil  angels  will  be  felt  in  the  churches. 

Of  Babylon,  at  the  time  brought  to  view  in  this  prophecy, 
it  is  declared,  "  Her  sins  have  reached  unto  heaven,  and  God 
hath  remembered  her  iniquities."1  She  has  filled  up  the 
measure  of  her  guilt,  and  destruction  is  about  to  fall  upon 
her.  But  God  still  has  a  people  in  Babylon ;  and  before  the 
visitation  of  his  judgments,  these  faithful  ones  must  be  called 
out,  that  they  "partake  not  of  her  sins,  and  receive  not  of 
her  plagues."  Hence  the  movement  symbolized  by  the 
angel  coming  down  from  Heaven,  lightening  the  earth  with 
his  glory,  and  crying  mightily  with  a  strong  voice,  announc- 
ing the  sins  of  Babylon.  In  connection  with  his  message 
the  call  is  heard,  "Come  out  of  her,  my  people."  These 
announcements,  uniting  with  the  third  angel's  message, 
constitute  the  final  warning  to  be  given  to  the  inhabitants 
of  the  earth. 

Fearful  is  the  issue  to  which  the  world  is  to  be  brought. 
The  powers  of  earth,  uniting  to  war  against  the  command- 
ments of  God,  will  decree  that  all,  ."both  small  and  great, 
rich  and  poor,  free  and  bond," 2  shall  conform  to  the  cus- 
toms of  the  church  by  the  observance  of  the  false  sabbath. 
All  who  refuse  compliance  will  be  visited  with  civil  pen- 
alties, and  it  will  finally  be  declared  that  they  are  deserving 
of  death.  On  the  other  hand,  the  law  of  God  enjoining  the 
Creator's  rest-day  demands  obedience,  and  threatens  wrath 
against  all  who  transgress  its  precepts. 

With  the  issue  thus  clearly  brought  before  him,  whoever 
shall  trample  upon  God's  law  to  obey  a  human  enactment, 
receives  "the  mark  of  the  beast ;  he  accepts  the  sign  of  alle- 
giance to  the  power  which  he  chooses  to  obey  instead  of  God. 
The  warning  from  Heaven  is,  "  If  any  man  worship  the 
boMst  and  his  image,  and  receive  his  mark  in  his  forehead, 
or  in  his  hand,  the  same  shall  drink  of  the  wine  of  the 
wrath  of  God,  which  is  poured  out  without  mixture  into  the 
cup  of  his  indignation." 3 

1  Rev.  18  : 5.  2  Rev.  13  : 16.  3  Rev.  14 : 9,  la 


Till;  /-7AM  L    \\.\RMXG.  605 

But  not  one  is  made  to  suffer  the  wrath  of  God  until  the 
truth  lias  been  brought  home  to  his  mind  and  conscience, 
and  has  been  rejected.  There  are  many  who  have  never 
had  an  opportunity  to  hear  the  special  truths  for  this  time. 
The  obligation  of  the  fourth  commandment  has  never  been 
set  before  them  in  its  true  light.  He  who  reads  every  heart, 
and  tries  every  motive,  will  leave  none  who  desire  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  truth,  to  be  deceived  as  to  the  issues  of  the  con- 
troversy. The  decree  is  not  to  be  urged  upon  the  people 
blindly.  Every  one  is  to  have  sufficient  light  to  make  his 
decision  intelligently. 

The  Sabbath  will  be  the  great  test  of  loyalty ;  for  it  is  the 
point  of  truth  especially  controverted.  When  the  final  test 
shall  be  brought  to  bear  upon  men,  then  the  line  of  dis- 
tinction will  be  drawn  between  those  who  serve  God  and 
those  who  serve  him  not.  While  the  observance  of  the  false1 
sabbath  in  compliance  with  the  law  of  the  State,  contrary 
to  the  fourth  commandment,  will  be  an  avowal  of  allegiance 
to  a  power  that  is  in  opposition  to  God,  the  keeping  of  the 
true  Sabbath,  in  obedience  to  God's  law,  is  an  evidence  of 
loyalty  to  the  Creator.  While  one  class,  by  accepting  the 
sign  of  submission  to  earthly  powers,  receive  the  mark  of 
the  beast,  the  other,  choosing  the  token  of  allegiance  to 
divine  authority,  receive  the  seal  of  God.1 

Heretofore  those  who  presented  the  truths  of  the  third 
angel's  message  have  often  been  regarded  as  mere  alarmists. 
Their  predictions  that  religious  intolerance  would  gain  con- 
trol in  the  United  States,  that  church  and  State  would  unite 
to  persecute  those  who  keep  the  commandments  of  God, 
have  been  pronounced  groundless  and  absurd.  It  has  been 
confidently  declared  that  this  land  could  never  become  other 
than  what  it  has  been,  the  defender  of  religious  freedom. 
But  as  the  question  of  enforcing  Sunday  observance  is  widely 
agitated,  the  event  so  long  doubted  and  disbelieved  is  seen 
to  be  approaching,  and  the  third  message  will  produce  an 
effect  which  it  could  not  have  had  before. 

1  See  Appendix,  Note  13. 


C0(j  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

In  every  generation  God  has  sent  his  servants  to  rebuke 
sin,  both  in  the  world  and  in  the  church.  But  the  people 
desire  smooth  things  spoken  to  them,  and  the  pure,  un- 
varnished truth  is  not  acceptable.  Many  reformers,  in  en- 
tering upon  their  work,  determined  to  exercise  great  pru- 
dence in  attacking  the  sins  of  the  church  and  the  nation. 
They  hoped,  by  the  example  of  a  pure  Christian  life,  to  lead 
the  people  back  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Bible.  But  the  Spirit 
of  God  came  upon  them  as  it  came  upon  Elijah,  moving 
him  to  rebuke  the  sins  of  a  Avicked  king  and  an  apostate 
people;  they  could  not  refrain  from  preaching  the  plain 
utterances  of  the  Bible, — doctrines  which  they  had  been 
reluctant  to  present.  They  were  impelled  to  zealously  de- 
clare the  truth,  and  the  danger  which  threatened  souls. 
The  words  which  the  Lord  gave  them  they  uttered,  fearless 
of  consequences,  and  the  people  were  compelled  to  hear  the 
warning. 

Thus  the  message  of  the  third  angel  will  be  proclaimed. 
As  the  time  comes  for  it  to  be  given  with  greatest  power, 
the  Lord  will  work  through  humble  instruments,  leading 
the  minds  of  those  who  consecrate  themselves  to  his  service. 
The  laborers  will  be  qualified  rather  by  the  unction  of  his 
Spirit  than  by  the  training  of  literary  institutions.  Men  of 
faith  and  prayer  will  be  constrained  to  go  forth  with  holy 
zeal,  declaring  the  words  which  God  gives  them.  The  sins 
of  Babylon  will  be  laid  open.  The  fearful  results  of  en- 
forcing the  observances  of  the  church  by  civil  authority,  the 
inroads  of  Spiritualism,  the  stealthy  but  rapid  progress  of 
the  papal  power, — all  will  be  unmasked.  By  these  solemn 
warnings  the  people  will  be  stirred.  Thousands  upon  thou- 
sands will  listen  who  have  never  heard  words  like  these. 
In  amazement  they  hear  the  testimony  that  Babylon  is  tin- 
church,  fallen  because  of  her 'errors  and  sins,  because  of  her 
rejection  of  the  truth  sent  to  her  from  Heaven.  As  the 
people  go  to  their  former  teachers  with  the  eager  inquiry, 
Are  these  things  so?  the  ministers  present  fables,  prophesy 


THE  FJXA  L   WA  RXING.  607 

smooth  things,  to  soothe  their  fears,  and  quiet  the  awakened 
conscience.  But  since  many  refuse  to  be  satisfied  with  the 
mere  authority  of  men,  and  demand  a  plain  "  Thus  saith 
the  Lord,"  the  popular  ministry,  like  the  Pharisees  of  old, 
filled  with  anger  as  their  authority  is  questioned,  will  de- 
nounce the  message  as  of  Satan,  and  stir  up  the  sin-loving 
multitudes  to  revile  and  persecute  those  who  proclaim  it. 

As  the  controversy  extends  into  new  fields,  and  the  minds 
of  the  people  are  called  to  God's  down -trodden  law,  Satan 
is  astir.  The  power  attending  the  message  will  only  madden 
those'who  oppose  it.  The  clergy  will  put  forth  almost  super- 
human efforts  to  shut  away  the  light,  lest  it  should  shine 
upon  their  flocks.  By  every  means  at  their  command  they 
will  endeavor  to  suppress  the  discussion  of  these  vital  ques- 
tions. The  church  appeals  to  the  strong  arm  of  civil  power, 
and  in  this  work,  papists  and  Protestants  unite.  As  the 
movement  for  Sunday  enforcement  becomes  more  bold  and 
decided,  the  law  will  be  invoked  against  commandment- 
keepers.  They  will  be  threatened  with  fines  and  impris- 
onment, and  some  will  be  offered  positions  of  influence,  and 
other  rewards  and  advantages,  as  inducements  to  renounce 
their  faith.  But  their  steadfast  answer  is,  "  Show  us  from 
the  Word  of  God  our  error/' — the  same  plea  that  was  made 
by  Luther  under  similar  circumstances.  Those  who  are 
arraigned  before  the  courts  make  a  strong  vindication  of 
the  truth,  and  some  who  hear  them  are  led  to  take  thejr 
stand  to  keep  all  the  commandments  of  God.  Thus  light 
will  be  brought  before  thousands  who  otherwise  would  know 
nothing  of  these  truths. 

Conscientious  obedience  to  the  Word  of  God  will  be  treated 
as  rebellion.  Blinded  by  Satan,  the  parent  will  exercise 
harshness  and  severity  toward  the  believing  child;  the 
master  or  mistress  will  oppress  the  commandment-keeping 
servant.  Affection  will  be  alienated;  children  will  be  dis- 
inherited, and  driven  from  home.  The  words  of  Paul  will 
be  literally  fulfilled,  "All  that  will  live  godly  in  Christ  Jesus 


608  7777?   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


shall  suffer  persecution." 1  As  the  defenders  of  truth  refuse 
to  honor  the  Sunday -sabbath,  some  of  them  will  be  thrust 
into  prison,  some  will  be  exiled,  some  will  be  treated  as 
slaves.  To  human  wisdom,  all  this  now  seems  impossible; 
but  as  the  restraining  Spirit  of  God  shall  be  withdrawn  from 
men,  and  they  shall  be  under  the  control  of  Satan,  who 
hates  the  divine  precepts,  there  will  be  strange  develop- 
ments. The  heart  can  be  very  cruel  when  God's  fear  and 
love  are  removed. 

As  the  storm  approaches,  a  large  class  who  have  professed 
faith  in  the  third  angel's  message,  but  have  not  been  sanc- 
tified through  obedience  to  the  truth,  abandon  their  position, 
and  join  the  ranks  of  the  opposition.  By  uniting  with  the 
world  and  partaking  of  its  spirit,  they  have  come  to  view 
matters  in  nearly  the  same  light;  and  when  the  test  is 
brought,  they  are  prepared  to  choose  the  easy,  popular  side. 
Men  of  talent  and  pleasing  address,  who  once  rejoiced  in 
the  truth,  employ  their  powers  to  deceive  and  mislead  souls. 
They  become  the  most  bitter  enemies  of  their  former  brethren. 
When  Sabbath-keepers  are  brought  before  the  courts  to 
answe^  for  their  faith,  these  apostates  are  the  most  efficient 
agents  of  Satan  to  misrepresent  and  accuse  them,  and  by 
false  reports  and  insinuations  tc  stir  up  the  rulers  against 
them. 

In  this  time  of  persecution  the  faith  of  the  Lord's  servants 
wjll  be  tried.  They  have  faithfully  given  the  warning, 
looking  to  God  and  to  his  Word  alone.  God's  Spirit,  mov- 
ing upon  their  hearts,  lias  constrained  them  to  speak. 
Stimulated  with  holy  zeal,  and  with  the  divine  impulse 
strong  upon  them,  they  entered  upon  the  performance  of 
their  duties  wifhout  coldly  calculating  the  consequences  of 
speaking  to  the  people  the  word  which  the  Lord  had  given 
them.  They  have  not  consulted  their  temporal  interests, 
or  sought  to  preserve  their  reputation  or  their  lives.  Yet 
when  the  storm  of  opposition  and  reproach  bursts  upon 

1 2  Tim.  3  : 12. 


THE  FINAL   WARNING.  609 


them,  some,  overwhelmed  with  consternation,  will  be  ready 
to  exclaim,  "  Had  we  foreseen  the  consequences  of  our  words, 
we  would  have  held  our  peace."  They  are  hedged  in  with 
difficulties.  Satan  assails  them  with  fierce  temptations. 
The  work  which  they  have  undertaken  seems  far  beyond 
their  ability  to  accomplish.  They  are  threatened  with  de- 
struction. The  enthusiasm  which  animated  them  is  gone; 
yet  they  cannot  turn  back.  Then,  feeling  their  utter  help- 
lessness, they  flee  to  the  Mighty  One  for  strength.  They 
remember  that  the  words  which  they  have  spoken  were  not 
theirs,  but  His  who  bade  them  give  the  warning.  God  put 
the  truth  into  their  hearts,  and  they  could  not  forbear  to 
proclaim  it. 

The  same  trials  have  been  experienced  by  men  of  God  in 
ages  past.  Wycliffe,  Huss,  Luther,  Tyiidale,  Baxter,  Wesley, 
urged  that  all  doctrines  be  brought  to  the  test  of  the  Bible, 
and  de'clared  that  they  would  renounce  everything  which 
it  condemned.  Against  these  men,  persecution  raged  with 
relentless  fury;  yet  they  ceased  not  to  declare  the  truth. 
Different  periods  in  the  history  of  the  church  have  each 
been  marked  by  the  development  of  some  special  truth* 
adapted  to  the  necessities  of  God's  people  at  that  time. 
Every  new  truth  has  made  its  w7ay  against  hatred  and  oppo- 
sition; those  who  were  blessed  with  its  light  were  tempted 
and  tried.  The  Lord  gives  a  special  truth  for  the  people 
in  an  emergency.  Who  dare  refuse  to  publish  it?  He  com- 
mands his  servants  to  present  the  last  invitation  of  mercy 
to  the  world.  They  cannot  remain  silent,  except  at  the 
peril  of  their  souls.  Christ's  ambassadors  have  .nothing  to 
do  with  consequences.  They  must  perform  their  duty,  and 
leave  results  with  God. 

As  the  opposition  rises  to  a  fiercer  height,  the  servants  of 
God  are  again  perplexed;  for  it  seems  to  them  that  they 
have  brought  the  crisis.  But  conscience  and  the  Word  of 
<ind  assure  them  that  their  course  is  right;  and  although 
the  trials  continue,  they  are  strengthened  to  bear  them. 


610  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  contest  grows  closer  and  sharper,  but  their  faith  and 
courage  rise  with  the  emergency.  Their  testimony  is,  "  We 
dare  not  tamper  with  God's  Word,  dividing  his  holy  law, 
calling  one  portion  essential  and  another  non-essential,  to 
gain  the  favor  of  the  world.  The  Lord  whom  we  serve  is 
able  to  deliver  us.  Christ  has  conquered  the  powers  of 
earth;  and  shall  we  be  afraid  of  a  world  already  conquered?" 

Persecution  in  its  varied  forms  is  the  development  of  a 
principle  which  will  exist  as  long  as  Satan  exists,  and  Chris- 
tianity has  vital  power.  No  man  can  serve  God  without 
enlisting  against  himself  the  opposition  of  the  hosts  of  dark- 
ness. Evil  angels  will  assail  him,  alarmed  that  his  influence 
is  taking  the  prey  from  their  hands.  Evil  men,  rebuked 
by  his  example,  will  unite  with  them  in  seeking  to  separate 
him  from  God  by  alluring  temptations.  When  these  do 
not  succeed,  then  a  compelling  power  is  employed  to  force 
the  conscience. 

But  so  long  as  Jesus  remains  man's  intercessor  in  the 
sanctuary  above,  the  restraining  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
is  felt  by  rulers  and  people.  It  still  controls,  to  some  ex- 
tent, the  laws  of  the  land.  Were  it  not  for  these  laws,  the 
condition  of  the  world  would  be  much  worse  than  it  now 
is.  While  many  of  our  rulers  are  active  agents  of  Satan, 
God  also  has  his  agents  among  the  leading  men  of  the 
nation.  The  enemy  moves  upon  his  servants  to  propose 
measures  that  would  greatly  impede  the  wrork  of  God;  but 
statesmen  who  fear  the  Lord  are  influenced  by  holy  angels 
to  oppose  such  propositions  with  unanswerable  arguments. 
Thus  a  few  men  will  hold  in  check  a  powerful  current  of 
evil.  The  opposition  of  the  enemies  of  truth  will  bo  re- 
strained that  the  third  angel's  message  may  do  its  work. 
When  (lie  final  warning  shall  be  given,  it  will  arrest  the 
attention  of  these  leading  men  through  whom  the  Lord  is 
now  working,  and  some  of  them  will  accept  it,  and  will 
stand  with  the  people  of (lod  through  the  time  of  trouble. 

The  angel  who  unites  in  the  proclamation  of  the  third 


THE  FINAL   WARNING.  611 


angel's  message  is  to  lighten  the  whole  earth  with  his  glory. 
A  work  of  world-wide  extent  and  unwonted  power  is  here 
foretold.  The  Advent  movement  of  1840-44  was  a  glorious 
manifestation  of  the  power  of  God;  the  first  angel's  message 
was  carried  to  every  missionary  station  in  the  world,  and 
in  some  countries  there  was  the  greatest  religious  interest 
which  has  been  witnessed  in  any  land  since  the  Reformation 
of  the  sixteenth  century;  but  these  are  to  be  far  exceeded 
by  the  mighty  movement  under  the  last  warning  of  the 
third  angel. 

The  work  will  be  similar  to  that  of  the  day  of  Pentecost. 
As  the  "  former  rain  "  was  given,  in  the  outpouring  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  at  the  opening  of  the  gospel,  to  cause  the  up- 
springing  of  the  precious  seed,  so  the  "  latter  rain  "  will  be 
given  at  its  close,  for  the  ripening  of  the  harvest.  "  Then 
shall  we  know,  if  we  follow  on  to  know  the  Lord ;  his  going 
forth  is  prepared  as  the  morning;  and  he  shall  come  unto 
us  as  the  rain,  as  the  latter  and  former  rain  unto  the  earth." l 
"  Be  glad  then,  ye  children  of  Zion,  and  rejoice  in  the  Lord 
your  God;  for  he  hath  given  you  the  former  rain  mod- 
erately, and  he  will  cause  to  come  down  for  you  the  rain, 
the  former  rain,  and  the  latter  rain."2  "In  the  last  days, 
saith  God,  I  will  pour  out  of  my  Spirit  upon  all  flesh." 
"And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  whosoever  shall  call  on  the 
name  of  the  Lord  shall  be  saved."8  The  great  work  of  the 
gospel  is  not  to  close  with  less  manifestation  of  the  power 
of  God  than  marked  its  opening.  The  prophecies  which 
were  fulfilled  in  the  outpouring  of  the  former  rain  at  the 
opening  of  the  gospel,  are  again  to  be  fulfilled  in  the  latter 
rain  at  its  close.  Here  are  "the  times  of  refreshing"  to 
which  the  apostle  Peter  looked  forward  when  he  said,  "Re- 
pent ye  therefore,  and  be  converted,  that  your  sins  may  be 
blotted  out  [in  the  investigative  Judgment],  when  the  times 
of  refreshing  shall  come  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord;  and 
he  shall  send  Jesus."4 

1  Hosea  6:3.      2  Joel  2  : 23.      *  Acts  2  : 17,  21 ,      «  Acts  3  : 19,  20. 
44 


612  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

Servants  of  God,  with  their  faces  lighted  up  and  shining 
with  holy  consecration,  will  hasten  from  place  to  place  to 
proclaim  the  message  from  Heaven.  By  thousands  of 
voices,  all  over  the  earth,  the  warning  wrill  be  given.  Mir- 
acles will  be  wrought,  the  sick  will  be  healed,  and  signs  and 
wonders  will  follow  the  believers.  Satan  also  works  with 
lying  wonders,  even  bringing- down  fire  from  heaven  in  the 
sight  of  men. l  Thus  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  will  be 
brought  to  take  their  stand. 

The  message  will  be  carried  not  so  much  by  argument 
as  by  the  deep  conviction  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  argu- 
ments have  been  presented.  The  seed  has  been  sown,  and 
now  it  will  spring  up  and  bear  fruit.  The  publications  dis- 
tributed by  missionary  workers  have  exerted  their  influence, 
yet  many  whose  minds  were  impressed  have  been  prevented 
from  fully  comprehending  the  truth  or  from  yielding  obe- 
dience. Now  the  rays  of  light  penetrate  everywhere,  the 
truth  is  seen  in  its  clearness,  and  the  honest  children  of  God 
sever  the  bands  which  have  held  them.  Family  connec- 
tions, church  relations,  are  powerless  to  stay  them  now. 
Truth  is  more  precious  than  all  besides.  Notwithstanding 
the  agencies  combined  against  the  truth,  a  large  number 
take  their  stand  upon  the  Lord's  side. 

1  Rev.  13  : 13. 


RA:R^ 

Or    THE 

fERSlTT 

CF 


CHAPTER    XXXIX. 


' <THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE." 

"  AT  that  time  shall  Michael  stand  up,  the  great  prince 
which  standeth  for  the  children  of  thy  people;  and  there 
shall  be  a  time  of  trouble,  such  as  never  was  since  there  was 
a  nation  even  to  that  same  time;  and  at  that  time  thy  people 
shall  be  delivered,  every  one  that  shall  be  found  written  in 
the  book."1 

When  the  third  angel's  message  closes,  mercy  no  longer 
pleads  for  the  guilty  inhabitants  of  the  earth.  The  people  of 
God  have  accomplished  their  work.  They  have  received 
"  the  latter  rain,"  "  the  refreshing  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord,"  and  they  are  prepared  for  the  trying  hour  before  them. 
Angels  are  hastening  to  and  fro  in  Heaven.  An  angel  re- 
turning from  the  earth  announces  that  his  work  is  done ;  the 
final  test  has  been  brought  upon  the  world,  and  all  who  have 
proved  themselves  loyal  to  the  divine  precepts  have  received 
"  the  seal  of  the  living  God." 2  Then  Jesus  ceases  his  interces- 
sion in  the  sanctuary  above.  He  lifts  his  hands,  and  with  a 
loud  voice  says,  "  It  is  done ;"  and  all  the  angelic  host  lay  off 
their  crowns  as  he  makes  the  solemn  announcement:  "Pie 
that  is  unjust,  let  him  be  unjust  still;  and  he  which  is  filth)-, 
let  him  be  filthy  still ;  and  he  that  is  righteous,  let  him  be 
righteous  still;  and  he  that  is  holy,  let  him  be  holy  still." 3 
Every  case  has  been  decided  for  life  or  death.  Christ  has 
made  the  atonement  for  his  people,  and  blotted  out  their 
sins.  The  number  of  his  subjects  is  made  up;  "  the  king- 
dom and  dominion,  and  the  greatness  of  the  kingdom  under 
the  whole  heaven,"  is  about  to  be  given  to  the  heirs  of  sal-* 

1  Dan.  12:1.  *  See  Appendix,  Note  13.  3  Rev.  22  : 11. 

(013) 


614  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


vation,  and  Jesus  is  to  reign  as  King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of 
lords. 

When  he  leaves  the  sanctuary,  darkness  covers  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  earth.  In  that  fearful  time  the  righteous  must 
live  in  the  sight  of  a  holy  God  without  an  intercessor.  The 
restraint  which  has  been  upon  the  wicked  is  removed,  and 
Satan  has  entire  control  of  the  finally  impenitent.  God's 
long-suffering  has  ended.  The  \vorld  has  rejected  his  mercy, 
despised  his  love,  and  trampled  upon  his  law.  The  wicked 
have  passed  the  boundary  of  their  probation;  the  Spirit  of 
God,  persistently  resisted,  has  been  at  last  withdrawn.  Un- 
sheltered by  divine  grace,  they  have  no  protection  from  the 
wicked  one.  Satan  will  then  plunge  the  inhabitants  of  the 
earth  into  one  great,  final  trouble.  As  the  angels  of  God 
cease  to  hold  in  check  the  fierce  winds  of  human  passion, 
all  the  elements  of  strife  will  be  let  loose.  The  whole  world 
will  be  involved  in  ruin  more  terrible  than  that  which  came 
upon  Jerusalem  of  old. 

A  single  angel  destroyed  all  the  first-born  of  the  Egyp- 
tians, and  filled  the  land  with  mourning.  When  David 
offended  against  God  by  numbering  the  people,  one  angel 
caused  that  terrible  destruction  by  which  his\sin  was  pun- 
ished. The  same  destructive  power  exercised  IJv  holy  angels 
when  God  commands,  will  be  exercised  by  evil  angels  when 
he  permits.  There  are  forces  now  ready,  and  <\nly  waiting 
the  divine  permission,  to  spread  desolation  everywhere. 

Those  who  honor  the  law  of  God  have  been  accused  of 
bringing  judgments  upon  the  world,  and  they  will  be  re- 
garded as  the  cause  of  the  fearful  convulsions  of  nature  and 
the  strife  and  bloodshed  among  men  that  are  filling  the 
earth  with  woe.  The  power  attending  the  last  warning  has 
enraged  the  wicked;  their  anger  is  kindled  against  all  who 
have  received  the  message,  and  Satan  will  excite  to  still 
greater  intensity  the  spirit  of  hatred  and  persecution. 

When  God's  presence  was  finally  withdrawn  from  tlio 
Jewish  nation,  priests  and  people  knew  it  not.  Though 


y///:  rntK  OF  TitornLK. 


under  the  control  of  Satan,  and  swayed  by  the  most  horrible 
and  malignant  passions,  they  still  regarded  themselves  as 
the  chosen  of  God.  The  ministration  in  the  temple  con- 
tinued; sacrifices  were  offered  upon  its  polluted  altars,  and 
daily  the  divine  blessing  was  invoked  upon  a  people  guilty 
of  the  blood  of  God's  dear  Son,  and  seeking  to  slay  his  min- 
isters and  apostles.  So  when  the  irrevocable  decision  of  the 
sanctuary  has  been  pronounced,  and  the  destiny  of  the 
world  has  been  forever  fixed,  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth 
will  know  it  not.  The  forms  of  religion  will  be  continued 
by  a  people  from  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  has  been  finally 
withdrawn;  and  the  Satanic  /.cal  with  which  the  prince  of 
evil  will  inspire  them  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  malig- 
nant designs,  will  bear  the  semblance  of  zeal  for  God. 

As  the  Sabbath  has  become  the  special  point  of  contro- 
versy throughout  Christendom,  and  religious  and  secular 
authorities  have  combined  to  enforce  the  observance  of  the 
Sunday,  the  persistent  refusal  of  a  small  minority  to  yield  to 
the  popular  demand,  will  make  them  objects  of  universal 
execration.  It  will  be  urged  that  the  few  who  stand  in  op- 
position to  an  institution  of  the  church  and  a  law  of  the 
State,  ought  not  to  be  tolerated;  that  it  is  better  for  them  to 
suffer  than  for  whole  nations  to  be  thrown  into  confusion 
and  lawlessness.  The  same  argument  eighteen  hundred 
years  ago  was  brought  against  Christ  by  the  "  rulers  of  the 
people."  "  It  is  expedient  for  us,"  said  the  wily  Caiaphas, 
"  that  one  man  should  die  for  the  people,  and  that  the  whole 
nation  perish  not."  l  This  argument  will  appear  conclusive; 
and  a  decree  will  finally  be  issued  against  those  who  hallow 
the  Sabbath  of  the  fourth  commandment,  denouncing  them 
as  deserving  of  the  severest  punishment,  and  giving  the 
people  liberty,  after  a  certain  time,  to  put  them  to  death. 
Romanism  in  the  Old  World,  and  apostate  Protestantism  in 
the  New,  will  pursue  a  similar  course  toward  those  who 
honor  all  the  divine  precepts. 

i  John  11  :50. 


616  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


The  people  of  God  will  then  be  plunged  into  those  scenes 
of  affliction  and  distress  described  by  the  prophet  as  the 
time  of  Jacob's  trouble.  "Thus  saith  the  Lord:  We  have 
heard  a  voice  of  trembling,  of  fear,  and  not  of  peace."  "  All 
faces  are  turned  into  paleness.  Alas !  for  that  day  is  great, 
so  that  none  is  like  it;  it  is  even  the  time  of  Jacob's  trouble; 
but  he  shall  be  saved  out  of  it,"1 

Jacob's  night  of  anguish,  when  he  wrestled  in  prayer  for 
deliverance  from  the  hand  of  Esau,"  represents  the  expe- 
rience of  God's  people  in  the  time  of  trouble.  Because  of 
the  deception  practiced  to  secure  his  father's  blessing,  in- 
tended for  Esau,  Jacob  had  fled  for  his  life,  alarmed  by  his 
brother's  deadly  threats.  After  remaining  for  manv  years 
an  exile,  he  had  set  out,  at  God's  command,  to  return  with 
his  wives  and  children,  his  flocks  and  herds,  to  his  native 
country.  On  reaching  the  borders  of  the  land,  he  was  filled 
with  terror  by  the  tidings  of  Esau's  approach  at  the  head 
of  a  band  of  warriors,  doubtless  bent  upon  revenge.  Jacob's 
company,  unarmed  and  defenseless,  seemed  about  to  fall 
helpless  victims  of  violence  and  slaughter.  And  to  the 
burden  of  anxiety  and  fear  was  added  the  crushing  weight 
of  self-reproach;  for  it  was  his  own  sin  that  had  brought 
this  danger.  His  only  hope  was  in  the  mercy  of  God;  his 
only  defense  must  be  prayer.  Yet  he  leaves  nothing  un- 
done on  his  own  part  to  atone  for  the  wrong  to  his  brother, 
and  to  avert  the  threatened  danger.  So  should  the  followers 
of  Christ,  as  they  approach  the  time  of  trouble,  make  every 
exertion  to  place  themselves  in  a  proper  light  before  the 
people,  to  disarm  prejudice,  and  to  avert  the  danger  which 
threatens  liberty  of  conscience. 

Having  sent  his  family  away,  that  they  may  not  witness 
his  distress,  Jacob  remains  alone  to  intercede  with  God.  He 
confesses  his  sin,  and  gratefully  acknowledges  the  mercy  of 
God  toward  him,  while  with  deep  humiliation  he  pleads  the 
covenant  made  with  his  fathers,  and  the  promises  to  liim- 

1  Jer.  30  : 5-7.  2  Gen.  32  : 24-30. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  617 


self  in  the  night  vision  at  Bethel  and  in  the  land  of  his 
exile.  The  crisis  in  his  life  has  come;  everything  is  at 
stake.  In  the  darkness  and  solitude  he  continues  praying 
and  humbling  himself  before  God.  Suddenly  a  hand  is 
laid  upon  his  shoulder.  He  thinks  that  an  enemy  is  seek- 
ing his  life,  and  with  all  the  energy  of  despair  he  wrestles 
with  his  assailant.  As  the  day  begins  to  break,  the  stranger 
puts  forth  his  superhuman  power;  at  his  touch  the  strong 
man  seems  paralyzed,  and  he  falls,  a  helpless,  weeping  sup- 
pliant, upon  the  neck  of  his  mysterious  antagonist.  Jacob 
knows  now  that  it  is  the  Angel  of  the  covenant  with  whom 
he  has  been  in  conflict.  Though  disabled,  and  suffering  the 
keenest  pain,  he  does  not  relinquish  his  purpose.  Long  has 
he  endured  perplexity,  remorse,  and  trouble  for  his  sin ;  now 
he  must  have  the  assurance  that  it  is  pardoned.  The  divine 
visitant  seems  about  to  depart;  but  Jacob  clings  to  him, 
pleading  for  a  blessing.  The  Angel  urges,  "Let  me  go;  for 
the  day  breaketh;"  but  the  patriarch  exclaims,  "I  will  not 
let  thee  go,  except  thou  bless  me."  What  confidence,  what 
firmness  and  perseverance,  are  here  displayed!  Had  this 
been  a  boastful,  presumptuous  claim,  Jacob  would  have  been 
instantly  destroyed ;  but  his  was  the  assurance  of  one  who 
confesses  his  weakness  and  unworthiness,  yet  trusts  the 
mercy  of  a  covenant-keeping  God. 

"  He  had  power  over  the  Angel,  and  prevailed." l  Through 
humiliation,  repentance,  and  self-surrender,  this  sinful,  erring 
mortal  prevailed  with  the  Majesty  of  Heaven.  He  had 
fastened  his  trembling  grasp  upon  the  promises  of  God,  and 
the  heart  of  Infinite  Love  could  not  turn  away  the  sinner's 
plea.  As  an  evidence  of  his  triumph,  and  an  encourage- 
ment to  others  to  imitate  his  example,  his  name  was  changed 
from  one  which  was  a  reminder  of  his  sin,  to  one  that  com- 
memorated his  victory.  And  the  fact  that  Jacob  had  pre- 
vailed with  God  was  an  assurance  that  he  would  prevail 
with  men.  He  no  longer  feared  to  encounter  his  brother's 
anger;  for  the  Lord  was  his  defense. 

'•Hos.  12:4, 


618  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Satan  had  accused  Jacob  before  the  angels  of  God,  claim- 
ing the  right  to  destroy  him  because  of  his  sin;  he  had 
moved  upon  Esau  to  march  against  him;  and  during  the 
patriarch's  long  night  of  wrestling,  Satan  endeavored  to 
force  upon  him  a  sense  of  his  guilt,  in  order  to  discourage 
him,  and  break  his  hold  upon  God.  Jacob  was  driven 
almost  to  despair;  but  he  knew  that  without  help  from 
Heaven  he  must  perish.  He  had  sincerely  repented  of  his 
great  sin,  and  he  appealed  to  the  mercy  of  God.  He  would 
not  be  turned  from  his  purpose,  but  held  fast  the  Angel,  and 
urged  his  petition  with  earnest,  agonizing  cries,  until  he 
prevailed. 

As  Satan  influenced  Esau  to  march  against  Jacob,  so  he 
will  stir  up  the  wicked  to  destroy  God's  people  in  the  time 
of  trouble.  And  as  he  accused  Jacob,  he  will  urge  his  accu- 
sations against  the  people  of  God.  He  numbers  the  world 
as  his  subjects;  but  the  little  company  who  keep  the  com- 
mandments of  God  are  resisting  his  supremacy.  If  he  could 
blot  them  from  the  earth,  his  triumph  would  be  complete. 
He  sees  that  holy  angels  are  guarding  them,  and  lie  infers 
that  their  sins  have  been  pardoned;  but  he  does  not  know 
that  their  cases  have  been  decided  in  the  sanctuary  above. 
He  has  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  sins  which  he  has 
tempted  them  to  commit,  and  he  presents  these  before  God 
in  the  most  exaggerated  light,  representing  this  people  to 
be  just  as  deserving  as  himself  of  exclusion  from  the  favor 
of  God.  He  declares  that  the  Lord  cannot  in  justice  forgive1 
their  sins,  and  yet  destroy  him  and  his  angels.  He  claims 
them  as  his  prey,  and  demands  that  they  be  given  into  his 
hands  to  destroy. 

As  Satan  accuses  the  people  of  God  on  account  of  their 
sins,  the  Lord  permits  him  to  try  them  to  the  uttermost. 
Their  confidence  in  God,  their  faith  and  firmness,  will  be 
severely  tested.  As  they  review  the  past,  their  hopes  sink; 
for  in  their  whole  lives  they  can  see  little  good.  They  ;nv 
fully  conscious  of  their  weakness  and  ua worthiness.  Satan 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUJiLfi. 


endeavors  to  terrify  them  with  the  thought  that  their  cases 
are  hopeless,  that  the  stain  of  their  defilement  will  never 
bo  washed  away.  He  hopes  to  so  destroy  their  faith  that 
they  will  yield  to  his  temptations,  and  turn  from  their  alle- 
giance to  God. 

Though  God's  people  will  be  surrounded  by  enemies  who 
are  bent  upon  their  destruction,  yet  the  anguish  which  they 
suffer  is  not  a  dread  of  persecution  for  the  truth's  sake;  they 
fear  that  every  sin  has  not  been  repented  of,  and  that 
through  some  fault  in  themselves  they  shall  fail  to  realize 
the  fulfillment  of  the  Saviour's  promise,  "  I  will  keep  thee 
frpin  the  hour  of  temptation  which  shall  come  upon  all  the 
world."1  If  they  could  have  the  assurance  of  pardon,  they 
would  not  shrink  from  torture  or  death ;  but  should  they 
prove  unworthy,  and  lose  their  lives  because  of  their  own 
defects  of  character,  then  God's  holy  name  would  be  re- 
proached. 

On  every  hand  they  hear  the  plottings  of  treason,  and  see 
the  active  working  of  rebellion;  and  there  is  aroused  within 
them  an  intense  desire,  an  earnest  yearning  of  soul,  that  this 
great  apostasy  may  be  terminated,  and  the  wickedness  of  the 
wicked  may  come  to  an  end.  But  while  they  plead  with 
God  to  stay  the  work  of  rebellion,  it  is  with  a  keen  sense  of 
self-reproach  that  they  themselves  have  no  more  power  to 
resist  and  urge  back  the  mighty  tide  of  evil.  They  feel  that 
had  they  always  employed  all  their  ability  in  the  service  of 
Christ,  going  forward  from  strength  to  strength,  Satan's 
forces  would  have  less  power  to  prevail  against  them. 

They  afflict  their  souls  before  God,  pointing  to  their  past 
repentance  of  their  many  sins,  and  pleading  the  Saviour's 
promise,  "  Let  him  take  hold  of  my  strength,  that  he  may 
make  peace  with  me  ;  and  he  shall  make  peace  with  me." " 
Their  faith  does  not  fail  because  their  prayers  are  not  im- 
mediately answered.  Though  suffering  the  keenest  anxiety, 
terror,  and  distress,  tliey  do  not  cease  their  intercessions. 

.  3:10.  8Isa.  27  :  5. 


620  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


They  lay  hold  of  the  strength  of  God  as  Jacob  laid  hold  of 
the  Angel;  and  the  language  of  their  souls  is, "  I  will  not  let 
thee  go,  except  thou  bless  me." 

Had  not  Jacob  previously  repented  of  his  sin  in  obtaining 
the  birthright  by  fraud,  God  would  not  have  heard  his 
prayer  and  mercifully  preserved  his  life.  So,  in  the  time  of 
trouble,  if  the  people  of  God  had  unconfessed  sins  to  appear 
before  them  while  tortured  with  fear  and  anguish,  they 
would  be  overwhelmed;  despair  would  cut  off  their  faith, 
and  they  could  not  have  confidence  to  plead  with  God  for 
deliverance.  But  while  they  have  a  deep  sense  of  their  un- 
worthiness,  they  have  no  concealed  wrongs  to  reveal.  Their 
sins  have  gone  beforehand  to  Judgment,  and  have  been 
blotted  out;  and  they  cannot  bring  them  to  remembrance. 

Satan  leads  many  to  believe  that  God  will  overlook  their 
unfaithfulness  in  the  minor  affairs  of  life;  but  the  Lord 
shows  in  his  dealings  with  Jacob  that  he  will  in  nowise 
sanction  or  tolerate  evil.  All  who  endeavor  to  excuse  or 
conceal  their  sins,  and  permit  them  to  remain  upon  the 
books  of  Heaven,  unconfessed  and  unforgiven,  will  be  over- 
come by  Satan.  The  more  exalted  their  profession,  and  the 
more  honorable  the  position  which  they  hold,  the  more 
grievous  is  their  course  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  the  more 
sure  the  triumph  of  their  great  adversary.  Those  who  de- 
lay a  preparation  for  the  day  of  God  cannot  obtain  it  in  the 
time  of  trouble,  or  at  any  subsequent  time.  The  case  of  all 
such  is  hopeless. 

Those  professed  Christians  who  come  up  to  that  last  fear 
ful  conflict  unprepared,  will,  in  their  despair,  confess  their 
sins  in  words  of  burning  anguish,  while  the  wioked  exult 
over  their  distress.  These  confessions  are  of  the  same  char- 
acter as  was'  that  of  Esau  or  of  Judas.  Those  who  make 
them  lament  the  result  of  transgression,  but  not  its  guilt. 
They  feel  no  true  contrition,  no  abhorrence  of  evil.  They 
acknowledge  their  sin,  through  fear  of  punishment ;  but,  like 
Pharaoh  of  old,  they  would  return  to  their  defiance  of 
Heaven,  should  the  judgments  be  removed. 


THE  TIME  Of1  TROUBLE.  621 

Jacob's  history  is  also  an  assurance  that  God  will  not  cast 
off  those  who  have  been  deceived,  and  tempted,  and  betrayed 
into  sin,  but  who  have  returned  unto  him  with  true  repent- 
ance. While  Satan  seeks  to  destroy  this  class,  God  will  send 
his  angels  to  comfort  and  protect  them  in  the  time  of  peril. 
The  assaults  of  Satan  are  fierce  and  determined,  his  delu- 
sions are  terrible;  but  the  Lord's  eye  is  upon  his  people,  and 
his  ear  listens  to  their  cries.  Their  affliction  is  great,  the 
flames  of  the  furnace  seem  about  to  consume  them ;  but  the 
Refiner  will  bring  them  forth  as  gold  tried  in  the  fire.  God's 
love  for  his  children  during  the  period  of  their  severest  trial 
is  as  strong  and  tender  as  in  the  days  of  their  sunniest  pros- 
perity; but  it  is  needful  for  them  to  be  placed  in  the  furnace 
fire;  their  earthliness  must  be  consumed  that  the  image  of 
Christ  may  be  perfectly  reflected. 

The  season  of  distress  and  anguish  before  us  will  require 
a  faith  that  can  endure  weariness,  delay,  and  hunger, — a 
faith  that  will  not  faint,  though  severely  tried.  The  period 
of  probation  is  granted  to  all  to  prepare  for  that  time.  Jacob 
prevailed  because  he  was  persevering  and  determined.  His 
victory  is  an  evidence  of  the  power  of  importunate  prayer. 
All  who  will  lay  hold  of  God's  promises,  as  he  did,  and  be 
as  earnest  and  persevering  as  he  was,  will  succeed  as  he  suc- 
ceeded. Those  who  are  unwilling  to  deny  self,  to  agonize 
before  God,  to  pray  long  and  earnestly  for  his  blessing,  will 
not  obtain  it.  Wrestling  with  God — how  few  know  what  it 
is !  How  few  have  ever  had  their  souls  drawn  out  after  God 
with  intensity  of  desire  until  every  power  is  on  the  stretch. 
When  waves  of  despair  which  no  language  can  express 
sweep  over  the  suppliant,  how  few  cling  with  unyielding 
faith  to  the  promises  of  God. 

Those  who  exercise  but  little  faith  now,  are  in  the  greatest 
danger  of  falling  under  the  power  of  Satanic  delusions  and 
the  decree  to  compel  the  conscience.  And  even  if  they  en- 
dure the  test,  they  will  be  plunged  into  deeper  distress  and 
anguish,  in  the  time  of  trouble,  because  they  have  never 


THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


made  it  a  habit  to  trust  in  God.  The  lessons  of  faith  which 
they  have  neglected,  they  will  be  forced  to  learn  under  a 
terrible  pressure  of  discouragement. 

We  should  now  acquaint  ourselves  with  God  by  proving 
his  promises.  Angels  record  every  prayer  that  is  earnest 
and  sincere.  We  should  rather  dispense  with  selfish  grati- 
fications than  neglect  communion  with  God.  The  deepest 
poverty,  the  greatest  self-denial,  with  his  approval,  is  better 
than  riches,  honors,  ease,  and  friendship  without  it.  We 
must  take  time  to  pray.  If  we  allow  our  minds  to  be  ab- 
sorbed by  worldly  interests,  the  Lord  may  give  us  time  by 
removing  from  us  our  idols  of  gold,  of  houses,  or  of  fertile 
lands. 

The  young  would  not  be  seduced  into  sin  if  they  would 
refuse  to  enter  any  path,  save  that  upon  which  they  could 
ask  God's  blessing.  If  the  messengers  who  bear  the  last 
solemn  warning  to  the  world  would  pray  for  the  blessing 
of  God,  not  in  a  cold,  listless,  lazy  manner,  but  fervently  and 
in  faith,  as  did  Jacob,  they  would  find  many  places  where 
they  could  say,  "I  have  seen  God  face  to  face,  and  my  life 
is  preserved."1  They  would  be  accounted  of  Heaven  as 
princes,  having  power  to  prevail  with  God  and  with  men. 

The  "  time  of  trouble  such  as  never  was,"  is  soon  to  open 
upon  us;  and  we  shall  need  an  experience  which  we  do  not 
now  possess,  and  which  many  are  too  indolent  to  obtain. 
It  is  often  the  case  that  trouble  is  greater  in  anticipation 
than  in  reality;  but  this  is  not  true  of  the  cri  sis  before  us. 
The  most  vivid  presentation  cannot  reach  the  magnitude 
of  the  ordeal.  In  that  time  of  trial,  every  soul  must  stand 
for  himself  before  God.  Though  Noah,  Daniel,  and  .Job 
were  in  the  land,  u  as  I  live,  saith  the  Lord  God,  they  shall 
deliver  neither  son  nor  daughter;  they  shall  but  deliver 
their  own  souls  by  their  righteousness."  J 

Now,  while  our  great  High  Priest  is  making  the  atone- 
ment for  us,  we  should  seek  to  become  perfect  in  Christ.  Not 
even  by  a  thought  could  our  Saviour  be  brought  to  yield  to 

1Gen.  32:30.  *Eze.U:20. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  623 

the  power  of  temptation.  Satan  finds  in  human  hearts  some 
point  where  he  can  gain  a  foot-hold ;  some  sinful  desire  is 
cherished,  by  means  of  which  his  temptations  assert  their 
power.  But  Christ  declared  of  himself,  "  The  prince  of  this 
world  cometh,  and  hath  nothing  in  me."  *  Satan  could  find 
nothing  in  the  Son  of  God  that  would  enable  him  to  gain 
the  victory.  He  had  kept  his  Father's  commandments,  and 
there  was  no  sin  in  him  that  Satan  could  use  to  his  advan- 
tage. This  is  the  condition  in  which  those  must  be  found 
who  shall  stand  in  the  time  of  trouble. 

It  is  in  this  life  that  we  are  to  separate  sin  from  us,  through 
faith  in  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ.  Our  precious  Saviour 
invites  us  to  join  ourselves  to  him,  to  unite  our  weakness 
to  his  strength,  our  ignorance  to  his  wisdom,  aur  unwor- 
thiness  to  his  merits.  God's  providence  is  the  school  in 
which  we  are  to  learn  the  meekness  and  lowliness  of  Jesus. 
The  Lord  is  ever  setting  before  us,  not  the  way  we  would 
choose,  which  seems  easier  and  pleasanter  to  us,  but  the 
true  aims  of  life.  It  rests  with  us  to  co-operate  with  the 
agencies  which  Heaven  employs,  in  the  work  of  conforming 
our  characters  to  the  divine  model.  None  can  neglect  or 
defer  this  work  but  at  the  most  fearful  peril  to  their  souls. 

The  apostle  John  in  vision  heard  a  loud  voice  in  Heaven 
exclaiming,  "Woe  to  the  inhabiters  of  the  earth  and  of  the 
sea!  for  the  devil  is  come  down  unto  you,  having  great 
wrath,  because  he  knoweth  that  he  hath  but  a  short  time."2 
Fearful  are  the  scenes  which  call  forth  this  exclamation  from 
the  heavenly  voice.  The  wrath  of  Satan  increases  as  his 
time  grows  short,  and  his  work  of  deceit  and  destruction  will 
reach  its  culmination  in  the  time  of  trouble. 

Fearful  sights  of  a  supernatural  character  will  soon  be 
revealed  in  the  heavens,  in  token  of  the  power  of  miracle- 
working  demons.  The  spirits  of  devils  will  go  forth  to  the 
kings  of  the  earth  and  to  the  whole  world,  to  fasten  them 
in  deception,  and  urge  them  on  to  unite  with  Satan  in  his 
last  struggle  against  the  government  of  Heaven.  By  these 

1  John  14:  30.  2Rev.  12:13. 


624  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


agencies,  rulers  and  subjects  will  be  alike  deceived.  Per- 
sons will  arise  pretending  to  be  Christ  himself,  and  claiming 
the  title  and  worship  which  belong  to  the  world's  Eedeemer. 
They  will  perform  wonderful  miracles  of  healing,  and  will 
profess  to  have  revelations  from  Heaven  contradicting  the 
testimony  of  the  Scriptures. 

As  the  crowning  act  in  the  great  drama  of  deception, 
Satan  himself  will  personate  Christ.  The  church  has  long 
professed  to  look  to  the  Saviour's  advent  as  the  consum- 
mation of  her  hopes.  Now  the  great  deceiver  will  make 
it  appear  that  Christ  has  come.  In  different  parts  of  the 
earth,  Satan  will  manifest  himself  among  men  as  a  majestic 
being  of  dazzling  brightness,  resembling  the  description  of 
the  Son  of  God  given  by  John  in  the  Revelation.1  The 
glory  that  surrounds  him  is  unsurpassed  by  anything  that 
mortal  eyes  have  yet  beheld.  The  shout  of  triumph  rings 
out  upon  the  air,  "  Christ  has  come !  Christ  has  come ! "  The 
people  prostrate  themselves  in  adoration  before  him,  while 
he  lifts  up  his  hands,  and  pronounces  a  blessing  upon  them, 
as  Christ  blessed  his  disciples  when  he  was  upon  the  earth. 
His  voice  is  soft  and  subdued,  yet  full  of  melody.  In  gen- 
tle, compassionate  tones  he  presents  some  of  the  same  gra- 
cious, heavenly  truths  which  the  Saviour  uttered;  he  heals 
the  diseases  of  the  people,  and  then,  in  his  assumed  char- 
acter of  Christ,  he  claims  to  have  changed  the  Sabbath  to 
Sunday,  and  commands  all  to  hallow  the  day  which  he  has 
blessed.  He  declares  that  those  who  persist  in  keeping  holy 
the  seventh  day  are  blaspheming  his  name  by  refusing  to 
listen  to  his  angels  sent  to  them  with  light  and  truth.  This 
is  the  strong,  almost  overmastering  delusion.  Like  the 
Samaritans  who  were  deceived  by  Simon  Magus,  the  mul- 
titudes, from  the  least  to  the  greatest,  give  heed  to  these 
sorceries,  saying,  This  is  "  the  great  power  of  God." 9 

But  the  people  of  God  will  not  be  misled.  The  teachings 
of  this  false  christ  are  not  in  accordance  with  the  Scriptures. 
His  blessing  is  pronounced  upon  the  worshipers  of  the  beast 

1  Rev.  1:13-15.  3  Acts.  8:10. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  625 


and  his  image, — the  very  class  upon  whom  the  Bible  de- 
clares that  God's  vmmingled  wrath  shall  be  poured  out. 

And,  furthermore,  Satan  is  not  permitted  to  counterfeit 
the  manner  of  Christ's  advent.  The  Saviour  has  warned 
his  people  against  deception  upon  this  point,  and  has  clearly 
foretold  the  manner  of  his  second  coming.  "  There  shall 
arise  false  christs,  and  false  prophets,  and  shall  show  great 
signs  and  wonders;  insomuch  that,  if  it  were  possible,  they 
shall  deceive  the  very  elect.  .  .  .  Wherefore  if  they  shaH 
say  unto  you,  Behold,  he  is  in  the  desert;  go  not  forth :  behold, 
he  is  in  the  secret  chambers;  believe  it  not.  For  as  the 
lightning  cometh  out  of  the  east,  and  shineth  even  unto 
the  west;  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man  be."1 
This  coming,  there  is  110  possibility  of  counterfeiting.  It  will 
be  universally  known — witnessed  by  the  whole  world. 

Only  those  who  have  been  diligent  students  of  the  Script- 
ures, and  who  have  received  the  love  of  the  truth,  will  be 
shielded  from  the  powerful  delusion  that  takes  the  world 
captive.  By  the  Bible  testimony  these  will  detect  the  de- 
ceiver in  his  disguise.  To  all,  the  testing  time  will  come. 
By  the  sifting  of  temptation,  the  genuine  Christian  will  be 
revealed.  Are  the  people  of  God  now  so  firmly  estab- 
lished upon  his  Word  that  they  would  not  yield  to  the  evi- 
dence of  their  senses?  Would  they,  in  such  a  crisis,  cling  to 
the  Bible,  and  the  Bible  only  ?  Satan  will,  if  possible,  pre- 
vent them  from  obtaining  a  preparation  to  stand  in  that 
day.  He  will  so  arrange  affairs  as  to  hedge  up  their  way, 
entangle  them  with  earthly  treasures,  cause  them  to  carry 
a  heavy,  wearisome  burden,  that  their  hearts  may  be  over- 
charged with  the  cares  of  this  life,  and  the  day  of  trial  may 
come  upon  them  as  a  thief. 

As  the  decree  issued  by  the  various  rulers  of  Christendom 
against  commandment-keepers  shall  withdraw  the  protection 
of  government,  and  abandon  them  to  those  who  desire  their 
destruction,  the  people  of  God  will  flee  from  the  cities  and 

*Matt.  24  : 24-27,  31;  25  :  31;   Rev.  1  :7;  1  Thess.  4  :  16,  17. 


626  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


villages,  and  associate  together  in  companies,  dwelling  in 
the  most  desolate  and  solitary  places.  Many  will  find  refuge 
in  the  strongholds  of  the  mountains.  Like  the  Christians 
of  the  Piedmont  valleys,  they  will  make  the  high  places  of 
the  earth  their  sanctuaries,  and  will  thank  God  for  the 
"  munitions  of-  rocks." 1  But  many  of  all  nations,  and  all 
classes,  high  and  low,  rich  and  poor,  black  and  white,  will 
be  cast  into  the  most  unjust  and  cruel  bondage.  The  be- 
loved of  God  pass  weary  days,  bound  in  chains,  shut  in  by 
prison  bars,  sentenced  to  be  slain,  some  apparently  left  to 
die  of  starvation  in  dark  and  loathsome  dungeons.  No 
human  ear  is  open  to  hear  their  moans;  no  human  hand 
is  ready  to  lend  them  help. 

Will  the  Lord  forget  his  people  in  this  trying  hour?  Did 
he  forget  faithful  Noah  when  judgments  were  visited  upon 
the  antediluvian  world  ?  Did  he  forget  Lot  when  the  firo 
came  down  from  Heaven  to  consume  the  cities  of  the  plain? 
Did  he  forget  Joseph  surrounded  by  idolaters  in  Egypt? 
Did  he  forget  Elijah  when  the  oath  of  Jezebel  threatened 
him  with  the  fate  of  the  prophets  of  Baal?  Did  he  forget 
Jeremiah  in  the  dark  and  dismal  pit  of  his  prison-house  ? 
Did  he  forget  the  three  worthies  in  the  fiery  furnace?  or 
Daniel  in  the  den  of  lions  ? 

"Zion  said,  Jehovah  hath  forsaken  me,  and  my  Lord  hath 
forgotten  me.  Can  a  woman  forget  her  sucking  child,  that 
she  should  not  have  compassion  on  the  son  of  her  womb? 
yea,  they  may  forget,  yet  will  I  not  forget  thee.  Behold,  I 
have  graven  thee  upon  the  palms  of  my  hands." "  The  Lord 
of  hosts  has  said,  "  He  that  toucheth  you,  toucheth  the  apple 
of  his  eye."3 

Though  enemies  may  thrust  them  into  prison,  yet  dungeon 
walls  cannot  cut  off  the  communication  between  their  souls 
and  Christ.  One  who  sees  their  every  weakness,  who  is 
acquainted  with  every  trial,  is  above  all  earthly  powers;  ami 
angels  will  conn-  to  them  in  lonely  cells,  bringing  light  and 
peace  from  I  lea  von.  The  prison  will  bo  as  a  palace;  for 
Tsa.  33:16.  'Isa.  49:14-16.  »Zech.  2:8, 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  627 

the  rich  in  faith  dwell  there,  and  the  gloomy  walls  will  be 
lighted  up  with  heavenly  light,  as  when  Paul  and  Silas 
prayed  and  sung  praises  at  midnight  in  the  Philippian 
dungeon. 

God's  judgments  will  be  visited  upon  those  who  are  seek- 
ing to  oppress  and  destroy  his  people.  His  long  forbearance 
with  the  wicked  emboldens  men  in  transgression,  but  their 
punishment  is  none  the  less  certain  and  terrible  because  it 
is  long  delayed.  "The  Lord  shall  rise  up  as  in  Mount 
Perazim,  he  shall  be  wroth  as  in  the  valley  of  Gibeon,  that 
he  may  do  his  work,  his  strange  work;  and  bring  to  pass 
his  act,  his  strange  act."1  To  our  merciful  God  the  act  of 
punishment  is  a  strange  act.  "  As  I  live,  saith  the  Lord 
God,  I  have  no  pleasure  in  the  death  of  the  wicked." a  The 
Lord  is  "  merciful  and  gracious,  long-suffering,  and  abundant 
in  goodness  and  truth,"  "forgiving  iniquity  and  trans- 
gression and  sin."  Yet  he  will  "by  no  means  clear  the 
guilty."  "  The  Lord  is  slow  to  anger,  and  great  in  power, 
and  will  not  at  all  acquit  the  wicked."*  By  terrible  things 
in  righteousness  he  will  vindicate  the  authority  of  his  down- 
trodden law.  The  severity  of  the  retribution  awaiting  the 
transgressor  may  be  judged  by  the  Lord's  reluctance  to 
execute  justice.  *  The  nation  with  which  he  bears  long,  and 
which  he  will  not  smite  until  it  has  filled  up  the  measure 
of  its  iniquity  in  God's  account,  will  finally  drink  the  cup 
of  wrath  unmixed  with  mercy. 

When  Christ  ceases  his  intercession  in  the  sanctuary,  the 
unrningled  wrath  threatened  against  those  who  worship  the 
beast  and  his  image  and  receive  his  mark,4  will  be  poured 
out.  The  plagues  upon  Egypt  when  God  was  about  to 
deliver  Israel,  were  similar  in  character  to  those  more  ter- 
rible and  extensive  judgments  which  are  to  fall  upon  the 
world  just  before  the  final  deliverance  of  God's  people.  Says 
the  Eevelator,  in  describing  these  terrific  scourges,  "  There 
fell  a  noisome  and  grievous  sore  upon  the  men  which  had 

1  Isa.  28  : 21.  *  Eze.  33  : 11.  s Ex.  34  : 6,  7;  Nah.  1 :3. 

4  Rev.  14:9,10.  45 


628  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


the  mark  of  the  beast,  and  upon  them  which  worshiped  his 
image."  The  sea  "became  as  the  blood  of  a  dead  man,  and 
every  living  soul  died  in  the  sea."  And  "the  rivers  and 
fountains  of  waters  became  blood."1  Terrible  as  these  in- 
flictions are,  God's  justice  stands  fully  vindicated.  The 
angel  of  God  declares,  "Thou  art  righteous,  O  Lord,  .  ,  . 
because  thou  hast  judged  thus.  For  they  have  shed  the 
blood  of  saints  and  prophets,  and  thou  hast  given  them 
blood  to  drink;  for  they  are  worthy." l  By  condemning  the 
people  of  God  to  death  they  have  as  truly  incurred  the  guilt 
of  their  blood,  as  if  it  had  been  shed  by  their  hands.  In 
like  manner  Christ  declared  the  Jews  of  his  time  guilty  of 
all  the  blood  of.  holy  men  which  had  been  shed  since  the 
days  of  Abel ;  for  they  possessed  the  same  spirit,  and  were 
seeking  to  do  the  same  work,  with  these  murderers  of  the 
prophets. 

In  the  plague  that  follows,  power  is  given  to  the  sun  "  to 
scorch  men  with  fire.  And  men  were  scorched  with  great 
heat." l  The  prophets  thus  describe  the  condition  of  the  earth 
at  this  fearful  time:  "The  land  mournetli;  .  .  .  because 
the  harvest  of  the  field  is  perished."  "All  the  trees 'of  the 
field  are  withered;  because  joy  is  withered  away  from  the 
sons  of  men."  "  The  seed  is  rotten  under  their  clods,  the 
garners  are  laid  desolate."  "  How  do  the  beasts  groan !  the 
herds  of  cattle  are  perplexed,  because  they  have  no  pasture. 
.  .  .  The  rivers  of  waters  are  dried  up,  and  the  fire  hath 
devoured  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness."  "The  songs  of 
the  temple  shall  be  bowlings  in  that  day,  saith  the  Lord 
God;  there  shall  be  many  dead  bodies  in  every  place;  they 
shall  cast  them  forth  with  silence." 2 

These  plagues  are  not  universal,  or  the  inhabitants  of  the 
earth  would  be  wholly  cut  off.  Yet  they  will  be  the  most 
awful  scourges  that  have  ever  been  known  to  mortals.  All 
the  judgments  upon  men,  prior  to  the  close  of  probation, 
have  been  mingled  with  mercy.  The  pleading  blood  of 

1  Rev.  1C  :  2-6,  8,  9.  a  Joel  1 : 10  -12,  17-20;  Amos  8  : 3. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  629 


Christ  has  shielded  the  sinner  from  receiving  the  full  measure 
of  his  guilt;  but  in  the  final  Judgment,  wrath  is  poured  out 
iin mixed  with  mercy. 

In  that  day,  multitudes  will  desire  the  shelter  of  God's 
mercy  which  they  have  so  long  despised.  "Behold,  the 
days  come,  saith  the  Lord  God,  that  I  will  send  a  famine 
in  the  land,  not  a  famine  of  bread,  nor  a  thirst  for  water, 
but  of  hearing  the  words  of  the  Lord.  And  they  shall 
wander  from  sea  to  sea,  and  from  the  north  even  to  the 
east,  they  shall  run  to  and  fro  to  seek  the  word  of  the  Lord, 
and  shall  not  find  it." ] 

The  people  of  God  will  not  be  free  from  suffering;  but 
while  persecuted  and  distressed,  while  they  endure  priva- 
tion, and  suffer  for  want  of  food,  they  will  not  be  left  to 
perish.  That  God  who  cared  for  Elijah  will  not  pass  by  one 
of  his  self-sacrificing  children.  He  who  numbers  the  hairs 
of  their  head  will  care  for  them,  and  in  time  of  famine  they 
shall  be  satisfied.  While  the  wicked  are  dying  from  hunger 
and  pestilence,  angels  will  shield  the  righteous,  and  supply 
their  wants.  To  him  that  "  walketh  righteously "  is  the 
promise,  "Bread  shall  be  given  him;  his  waters  shall  be 
sure."  "When  the  poor  and  needy  seek  water,  and  there 
is  none,  and  their  tongue  faileth  for  thirst,  I  the  Lord  will 
hear  them,  I  the  God  of  Israel  will  not  forsake  them."  2 

"Although  the  fig-tree  shall  not  blossom,  neither  shall 
fruit  be  in  the  vines;'  the  labor  of  the  olive  shall  fail,  and 
the  fields  shall  yield  no  meat;  the  flock  shall  be  cut  off 
from  the  fold,  and  there  shall  be  no  herd  in  the  stalls ; "  yet 
shall  they  that  fear  him  "rejoice  in  the  Lord,"  and  joy  in 
the  God  of  their  salvation.3 

"The  Lord  is  thy  keeper;  the  Lord  is  thy  shade  upon  thy 
right  hand.  The  sun  shall  not  smite  thee  by  day,  nor  the 
moon  by  night.  The  Lord  shall  preserve  thee  from  all 
evil;  he  shall  preserve  thy  soul."  "He  shall  deliver  thee 
from  the  snare  of  the  fowler,  and  from  the  noisome  pesti- 

i  Amos  8:11,12.       a  Isa.  33  :  IB;  41  : 17.       3  Hab.  3  : 17,  18. 


630  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


lence.  He  shall  cover  thee  with  his  feathers,  and  under  his 
wings  shalt  thou  trust;  his  truth  shall  be  thy  shield  and 
buckler.  Thou  shalt  not  be  afraid  for  the  terror  by  night; 
nor  for  the  arrow  that  flieth  by  day;  nor  for  the  pestilence 
that  walketh  in  darkness ;  nor  for  the  destruction  that  wasteth 
at  noonday.  A  thousand  shall  fall  at  thy  side,  and  ten 
thousand  at  thy  right  hand;  bat  it  shall  not  come  nigh 
thee.  Only  with  thine  eyes  shalt  thou  behold  and  see  the 
reward  of  the  wicked.  Because  thou  hast  made  the  Lord, 
which  is  my  refuge,  even  the  Most  High,  thy  habitation; 
there  shall  no  evil  'befall  thee,  neither  shall  any  plague 
come  nigh  thy  dwelling."  * 

Yet  to  human  sight  it  will  appear  that  the  people  of  God 
must  soon  seal  their  testimony  witli  their  blood,  as  did  the 
martyrs  before  them.  They  themselves  begin  to  fear  that 
the  Lord  has  left  them  to  fall  by  the  hand  of  their  enemies. 
It  is  a  time  of  fearful  agony.  Day  and  night  they  cry  unto 
God  for  deliverance.  The  wicked  exult,  and  the  jeering 
cry  is  heard,  "Where  now  is  your  faith?  Why  does  not 
God  deliver  you  out  of  our  hands  if  you  are  indeed  his 
people  ?  "  But  the  waiting  ones  remember  Jesus  dying  upon 
Calvary's  cross,  and  the  chief  priests  and  rulers  shouting 
in  mockery,  "He  saved  others;  himself  he  cannot  save. 
If  he  be  the  King  of  Israel,  let  him  now  come  down  from 
the  cross,  and  we  will  believe  him." 5  Like  Jacob,  all  are 
wrestling  with  God.  Their  countenances  express  their  in- 
ternal struggle.  Paleness  sits  upon  every  face.  Yet  they 
cease  not  their  earnest  intercession. 

Could  men  see  with  heavenly  vision,  they  would  behold 
companies  of  angels  that  excel  in  strength  stationed  about 
those  who  have  kept  the  word  of  Christ's  patience.  With 
sympathizing  tenderness,  angels  have  witnessed  their  dis- 
tress, and  have  heard  their  prayers.  They  are  waiting  the 
word  of  their  Commander  to  snatch  them  from  their  peril. 
But  they  must  wait  yet  a  little  longer.  The  people  of  God 

1  Ps.  121  :  5-7;  91  : 3-10.  2  Matt.  27  : 42. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  631 


must  drink  of  the  cup,  and  be  baptized  with  the  baptism. 
The  very  delay,  so  painful  to  them,  is  the  best  answer  to 
their  petitions.  As  they  endeavor  to  wait  trustingly  for  the 
Lord  to  work,  they  are  led  to  exercise  faith,  hope,  and  pa- 
tience, which  have  been  too  little  exercised  during  their 
religious  experience.  Yet  for  the  elect's  sake,  the  time  of 
trouble  will  be  shortened.  "Shall  not  God  avenge  his  own 
elect,  which  cry  day  and  night  unto  him?  ...  I  tell 
you  that  he  will  avenge  them  speedily."  l  The  end  will 
come  more  quickly  than  men  expect.  The  wheat  will  be 
gathered  and  bound  in  sheaves  for  the  garner  of  God ;  the 
tares  will  be  bound  as  fagots  for  the  fires  of  destruction. 

The  heavenly  sentinels,  faithful  to  their  trust,  continue 
their  watch.  Though^  a  general  decree  has  fixed  the  time 
wrhen  commandment-keepers  may  be  put  to  death,  their 
enemies  will  in  some  cases  anticipate  the  decree,  and,  before 
the  time  specified,  will  endeavor  to  take  their  lives.  But  none 
can  pass  the  mighty  guardians  stationed  about  every  faithful 
soul.  Some  are  assailed  in  their  flight  from  the  cities  and 
villages ;  but  the  swords  raised  against  them  break  and  fall 
as  powerless  as  a  straw.  Others  are  defended  by  angels  in 
the  form  of  men  of  war. 

In  all  ages,  God  has  wrought  through  holy  angels  for  the 
succor  and  deliverance  of  his  people.  Celestial  beings  have 
taken  an  active  part  in  the  affairs  of  men.  They  have  ap- 
peared clothed  in  garments  that  shone  as  the  lightning; 
they  have  come  as  men,  in  the  garb  of  wayfarers.  Angels 
have  appeared  in  human  form  to  men  of  God.  They  have 
rested,  as  if  weary,  under  the  oaks  at  noon.  They  have 
accepted  the  hospitalities  of  human  homes.  They  have 
acted  as  guides  to  benighted  travelers.  They  have,  with 
their  own  hands,  kindled  the  fires  of  the  altar.  They  have 
opened  prison  doors,  and  set  free  the  servants  of  the  Lord. 
Clothed  with  the  panoply  of  Heaven,  they  came  to  roll  away 
the  stone  from  the  Saviour's  tomb. 

In  the  form  of  men,  angels  are  often  in  the  assemblies  of 

^  Luke  18: 7,  8. 


632  THE  GREAT  COXTX 


the  righteous,  and  they  visit  the  assemblies  of  the  wicked, 
as  they  went  to  Sodom,  to  make  a  record  of  their  deeds,  to 
determine  whether  they  have  passed  the  boundary  of  God's 
forbearance.  The  Lord  delights  in  me'rcy;  and  for  the  sake 
of  a  few  who  really  serve  him,  he  restrains  calamities,  and 
prolongs  the  tranquillity  of  multitudes.  Little  do  sinners 
against  God  realize  that  they  are  indebted  for  their  own 
lives  to  the  faithful  few  whom  they  delight  to  ridicule  and 
oppress. 

Though  the  rulers  of  this  world  know  it  not,  yet  often 
in  their  councils  angels  have  been  spokesmen.  Human 
eyes  have  looked  upon  them ;  human  ears  have  listened  to 
their  appeals;  human  lips  have  opposed  their  suggestions 
and  ridiculed  their  counsels;  human  hands  have  met  them 
with  insult  and  abuse.  In  the  council  hall  and  the  court 
of  justice,  these  heavenly  messengers  have  shown  an  inti- 
mate acquaintance  with  human  history ;  they  have  proved 
themselves  better  able  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  oppressed 
than  were  their  ablest  and  most  eloquent  defenders.  They 
have  defeated  purposes  and  arrested  evils  that  would  have 
greatly  retarded  the  work  of  God,  and  would  have  caused 
great  suffering  to  his  people.  In  the  hour  of  peril  and  dis- 
tress, "  the  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round  about  them 
that  fear  him,  and  delivereth  them." l 

With  earnest  longing,  God^s  people  await  the  tokens  of 
their  coming  King.  As  the  watchmen  are  accosted,  "What 
of  the  night ?"  the  answer  is  given  unfalteringly,  "'The 
morning  corn eth,  and  also  the  night.'2  Light  is  gleaming 
upon  the  clouds  above  the  mountain  tops.  Soon  there  will 
be  a  revealing  of  His  glory.  The  Sun  of  Righteousness  is 
about  to  shine  forth.  The  morning  and  the  night  are  both 
at  hand, — the  opening  of  endless  day  to  the  righteous,  the 
settling  down  of  eternal  night  to  the  wicked/' 

As  tliu  wrestling  ones  urge  their  petitions  before  God,  the 
veil  separating  them  from  the  unseen  seems  almost  with.- 

1  Pa.  34:7.  "Isa.  21  :11,  12. 


THE  TIME  OF  TROUBLE.  633 

drawn.  The  heavens  glow  with  the  dawning  of  eternal  day; 
and,  like  the  melody  of  angel  songs,  the  words  fall  upon 
the  ear,  "Stand  fast  to  your  allegiance.  Help  is  coming." 
Christ,  the  almighty  victor,  holds  out  to  his  weary  soldiers 
a  crown  of  immortal  glory;  and  his  voice  comes  from  the 
gates  ajar:  "Lo,  I  am  with  you.  Be  not  afraid.  I  am  ac- 
quainted with  all  your  sorrows;  I  have  borne  your  griefs. 
You  are  not  warring  against  untried  enemies.  I  have 
fought  the  battle  in  your  behalf,  and  in  my  name  you  are 
more  than  conquerors." 

The  precious  Saviour  will  send  help  just  when  we  need 
it.  The  way  to  Heaven  is  consecrated  by  his  foot-prints. 
Every  thorn  'that  wounds  our  feet  has  wounded  his.  Every 
cross  that  we  are  called  to  bear,  he  has  borne  before  us. 
The  Lord  permits  conflicts,  to  prepare  the  soul  for  peace. 
The  time  of  trouble  is  a  fearful  ordeal  for  God's  people; 
but  it  is  the  time  for  every  true  believer  to  look  up,  and  by 
faith  he  may  see  the  bow  of  promise  encircling  him. 

"  The  redeemed  of  the  Lord  shall  return,  and  come  with 
singing  unto  Zion;  and  everlasting  joy  shall  be  upon  their 
head;  they  shall  obtain  gladness  and  joy;  and  sorrow  and 
mourning  shall  flee  away.  I,  even  I,  am  he  that  comforteth 
you;  who  art  thou,  that  thou  shouldst  be  afraid  of  a  man 
that  shall  die,  and  of  the  son  of  man  which  shall  be  made 
as  grass;  and  forgettest  the  Lord  thy  Maker;  .  .  .  and 
hast  feared  continually  every  day  because  of  the  fury  of  the 
oppressor,  as  if  he  were  ready  to  destroy?. and  where  is  the 
fury  of  the  oppressor  ?  The  captive  exile  hasteneth  that  he 
may  be  loosed,  and  that  he  should  not  die  in  the  pit,  nor 
that  his  bread  should  fail.  But  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God, 
that  divided  the  sea,  whose  waves  roared.  The  Lord  of 
hosts  is  his  name.  And  I  have  put  my  words  in  thy  mouth, 
and  I  have  covered  thee  in  the  shadow  of  mine  hand." 

"  Therefore  hear  now  this,  thou  afflicted,  and  drunken, 
but  not  with  wine:  Thus  saith  thy  Lord  Jehovah,  and  thy 
God  that  pleadeth  the  cause  of  his  people,  Behold,  I  have 


634  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


taken  out  of  thine  hand  the  cup  of  trembling,  even  the 
dregs  of  the  cup  of  my  fury;  thou  shalt  no  more  drink  it 
again.  But  I  will  put  it  into  the  hand  of  them  that  afflict 
thee;  which  have  said  to  thy  soul,  Bow  down,  that  we  may 
go  over;  and  thou  hast  laid  thy  body  as  the  ground,  and 
as  the  street,  to  them  that  went  over." 1 

The  eye  of  God,  looking  down  the  ages,  was  fixed  upon 
the  crisis  which  his  people  are  to  meet,  when  earthly  powers 
shall  be  arrayed  against  them.  Like  the  captive  exile,  they 
will  be  in  fear  of  death  by  starvation  or  by  violence.  But 
the  Holy  One  who  divided  the  Red  Sea  before  Israel,  will 
manifest  his  mighty  power  and  turn  their  captivity.  "They 
shall  be  mine,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts,  in  that  day  when 
I  make  up  my  jewels;  and  I  will  spare  them,  as  a  man 
spareth  his  own  son  that  serveth  him."2  If  the  blood  of 
Christ's  faithful  witnesses  were  shed  at  this  time,  it  would 
not,  like  the  blood  of  the  martyrs,  be  as  seed  sown  to  yield 
a  harvest  for  God.  Their  fidelity  would  not  be  a  testimony 
to  convince  others  of  the  truth ;  for  the  obdurate  heart  has 
beaten  back  the  waves  of  mercy  until  they  return  no  more. 
If  the  righteous  were  now  left  to  fall  a  prey  to  their  enemies, 
it  would  be  a  triumph  for  the  prince  of  darkness.  Says  the 
psalmist,  "  In  the  time  of  trouble  he  shall  hide  me  in  his 
pavilion;  in  the  secret  of  his  tabernacle  shall  he  hide  me."3 
Christ  has  spoken :  "  Come,  my  people,  enter  thou  into  thy 
chambers,  and  shut  thy  doors  about  thee;  hide  thyself  as 
it  were  for  a  little  moment,  until  the  indignation  be  over- 
past. For,  behold,  the  Lord  cometh  out  of  his  place  to 
punish  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  for  their  iniquity."4 
Glorious  will  be  the  deliverance  of  those  who  have  patiently 
waited  for  his  coming,  and- whose  names  are  written  in  the 
book  of  life. 

Usa.  61: 11-16,  21-23.     *  Mai.  3:17.     »  Pa.  27:5.     4  Isa.  26  : 20,  2L 


CHAPTER    XL 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED. 

WHEN  the  protection  of  human  laws  shall  be  withdrawn 
from  those  who  honor  the  law  of  God,  there  will  be,  in  dif- 
ferent lands,  a  simultaneous  movement  for  their  destruction. 
As  the  time  appointed  in  the  decree  draws  near,  the  people 
will  conspire  to  root  out  the  hated  sect.  It  will  be  deter- 
mined to  strike  in  one  night  a  decisive  blow,  which  shall 
utterly  silence  the  voice  of  dissent  and  reproof. 

The  people  of  God — some  in  prison  cells,  some  hidden  in 
solitary  retreats  in  the  forests  and  the  mountains — still  plead 
for  divine  protection,  while  in  every  quarter  companies  of 
armed  men,  urged  on  by  hosts  of  evil  angels,  are  preparing 
for  the  work  of  death.  It  is  now,  in  the  hour  of  utmost 
extremity,  that  the  God  of  Israel  will  interpose  for  the  de- 
liverance of  his  chosen.  Saith  the  Lord:  "Ye  shall  have 
a  song,  as  in  the  night  when  a  holy  solemnity  is  kept;  and 
gladness  of  heart,  as  when  one  goeth  ...  to  come 
into  the  mountain  of  Jehovah,  to  the  Might/  One  of  Israel. 
And  the  Lord  shall  cause  his  glorious  voice  to  ^e  heard,  and 
shall  show  the  lighting  down  of  his  arm,  with  the  indig- 
nation of  his  anger,  and  with  the  flame  of  a  devouring  fire, 
with  scattering,  and  tempest,  and  hailstones." l 

With  shouts  of  triumph,  jeering,  and  imprecation,  throngs 
of  evil  men  are  about  to  rush  upon  their  prey,  when  lo,  a 
dense  blackness,  deeper  than  the  darkness  of  the  night,  falls 
upon  the  earth.  Then  a  rainbow,  shining  with  the  glory 
from  the  throne  of  God,  spans  the  heavens,  and  seems  to 
encircle  each  praying  company.  The  angry  multitudes  are 

30:29,30. 

(635) 


636  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


suddenly  arrested.  Their  mocking  cries  die  away.  The 
objects  of  their  murderous  rage  are  forgotten.  With  fearful 
forebodings  they  gaze  upon  the  symbol  of  God's  covenant, 
and  long  to  be  shielded  from  its  overpowering  brightness. 

By  the  people  of  God  a  voice,  clear  and  melodious,  is 
heard,  saying,  "Look  up,"  and,  lifting  their  eyes  to  the 
heavens,  they  behold  the  bow  of  promise.  The  black, 
angry  clouds  that  covered  the  firmament  are  parted,  and 
like  Stephen  they  look  up  steadfastly  into  Heaven,  and  see 
the  glory  of  God,  and  the  Son  of  man  seated  upon  his  throne. 
In  his  divine  form  they  discern  the  marks  of  his  humilia- 
tion; and  from  his  lips  they  hear  the  request,  presented 
before  his  Father  and  the  holy  angels,  "I  will  that  they 
also,  whom  thou  hast  given  me,  be  with  me  where  I  am." l 
Again  a  voice,  musical  and  triumphant,  is  heard,  saying, 
"They  come!  they  come!  holy,  harmless,  and  undefiled. 
They  have  kept  the  word  of  my  patience;  they  shall  walk 
among  the  angels;"  and  the  pale,  quivering  lips  of  those 
who  have  held  fast  their  faith,  utter  a  shout  of  victory. 

It  is  at  midnight  that  God  manifests  his  power  for  the 
deliverance  of  his  people.  The  sun  appears,  shining  in  its 
strength.  Signs  and  wonders  follow  in  quick  succession. 
The  wicked  look  with  terror  and  amazement  upon  the  scene, 
while  the  righteous  behold  with  solemn  joy  the  tokens  of 
their  deliverance.  Everything  in  nature  seems  turned  out 
of  its  course.  The  streams  cease  to  flow.  Dark,  heavy 
clouds  come  up,  and  clash  against  each  other.  In  the  midst 
of  the  angry  heavens  is  one  clear  space  of  indescribable 
glory,  whence  comes  the  voice  of  God  like  the  sound  of  many 
waters,  saying,  "  It  is  done."  '' 

That  voir<>  shakes  the  heavens  and  the  earth.  There  is 
a  mighty  earthquake,  "such  as  was  not  since  men.  were 
upon  1he  earth,  so  mighty  an  earthquake  mid  so  great."2 
The  {ii-maiueiit,  appears  to  open  and  shut.  The  glory  from 
the  throne  of  God  seems  flashing  through.  The  mount- 

'John  17  :24.  Rev.  16  :  17,  18. 


vert  Expressly  for  Great  Controversy. 


Copyrighted  1890. 


THE  GREAT  EARTHQUAKE. 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

CF 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED.  637 

ains  shake  like  a  reed  in  the  wind,  and  ragged  rocks  are 
scattered  on  every  side.  There  is  a  roar  as  of  a  coming 
tempest.  The  sea  is  lashed  into  fury.  There  is  heard  the 
shriek  of  the  hurricane,  like  the  voice  of  demons  upon  a 
mission  of  destruction.  The  whole  earth  heaves  and  swells 
like  the  waves  of  the  sea.  Its  surface  is  breaking  up. 
Its  very  foundations  seem  to  be  giving  way.  Mountain 
chains  are  sinking.  Inhabited  islands  disappear.  The 
seaports  that  have  become  like  Sodom  for  wickedness,  are 
swallowed  up  by  the  angry  waters.  Babylon  the  Great  hath 
come  in  remembrance  before  God,  "to  give  unto  her  the 
<  cup  of  the  wine  of  the  fierceness  of  his  wrath."1  Great 
hailstones,  every  one  "about  the  weight  of  a  talent,"  are 
doing  their  work  of  destruction.  The  proudest  cities  of 
the  earth  are  laid  low.  The  lordly  palaces,  upon  which  the 
world's  great  men  have  lavished  their  wealth  in  order 
to  glorify  themselves,  are  crumbling  to  ruin  before  their 
eyes.  Prison  walls  are  rent  asunder,  and  God's  people,  who 
have  been  held  in  bondage  for  their  faith,  are  set  free. 

Graves  are  opened,  and  "  many  of  them  that  sleep  in  the 
dust  of  the  earth"  "awake,  some  to  everlasting  life,  and 
some  to  shame  and  everlasting  contempt,"2  All  who  have 
died  in  the  faith  of  the  third  angel's  message  come  forth 
from  the  tomb  glorified,  to  hear  God's  covenant  of  peace 
with  those  who  have  kept  his  law.  "  They  also  which  pierced 
Him,"3  those  that  mocked  and  derided  Christ's  dying  agonies, 
and  the  most  violent  opposers  of  his  truth  and  his  people, 
are  raised  to  behold  him  in  his  glory,  and  to  see  the  honor 
placed  upon  the  loyal  and  obedient. 

Thick  clouds  still  cover  the  sky;  yet  the  sun  now  and 
then  breaks  through,  appearing  like  the  avenging  eye  of 
Jehovah.  Fierce  lightnings  leap  from  the  heavens,  envel- 
oping the  earth  in  a  sheet  of  flame.  Above  the  terrific  roar 
of  thunder,  voices,  mysterious  and  awful,  declare  the  doom 
of  the  wicked.  The  words  spoken  are  not  comprehended 

1  Rev.  16:19,  21.  2  Dan.  12:2.  3  Rev.  1:7. 


638  THE  ORE  A  T  CONTRO  VERS  Y. 

by  all;  but  they  are  distinctly  understood  by  the  false 
teachers.  Those  who  a  little  before  were  so  reckless,  so 
boastful  and  defiant,  so  exultant  in  their  cruelty  to  God's 
commandment-keeping  people,  are  now  overwhelmed  with 
consternation,  and  shuddering  in  fear.  Their  wails  arc 
heard  above  the  sound  of  the  elements.  Demons  acknowl- 
edge the  divinity  of  Christ,"  and  tremble  before  his  power, 
while  men  are  supplicating  for  mercy,  and  groveling  in 
abject  terror. 

Said  the  prophets  of  old  as  they  beheld  in  holy  vision  the 
day  of  God:  "Howl  ye;  for  the  day  of  the  Lord  is  at  hand; 
it  shall  come  as  a  destruction  from -the  Almighty." l  "  Enter 
into  the  rock,  and  hide  thee  in  the  dust,  for  fear  of  the  Lord, 
and  for  the  glory  of  his  majesty.  The  lofty  looks  of  man 
shall  be  humbled,  and  the  haughtiness  of  men  shall  be 
bowed  down;  and  the  Lord  alone  shall  be  exalted  in  that 
day.  For  the  day  of  the  Lord  of  hosts  shall  be  upon  every 
one  that  is  proud  and  lofty,  and  upon  every  one  that  is 
lifted  up;  and  he  shall  be  brought  low."  "In  that  day 
a  man  shall  cast  the  idols  of  his  silver,  and  the  idols  of  his 
gold,  which  they  made  each  one  for  himself  to  worship,  to 
the  moles  and  to  the  bats;  to  go  into  the  clefts  of  the  rocks, 
and  into  the  tops  of  the  ragged  rocks,  for  fear  of  the  Lord, 
and  for  the  glory  of  his  majesty,  when  he  ariseth  to  shake 
terribly  the  earth." 2 

Through  a  rift  in  the  clouds,  there  beams  a  star  whose 
brilliancy  is  increased  fourfold  in  contrast  with  the  dark- 
ness. It  speaks  hope  and  joy  to  the  faithful,  but  severity 
and  wrath  to  the  transgressors  of  God's  law.  Those  who 
have  sacrificed  all  for  Christ  are  now  secure,  hidden  as  in 
the  secret  of  the  Lord's  pavilion.  They  have  been  tested, 
and  before  the  world  and  the  despisers  of  truth  they  havo 
evinced  their  fidelity  to  Him  who  died  for  them.  A  mar- 
velous change  has  come  over  those  who  have  held  fast  their 
integrity  in  the  very  face  of  death.  They  have  been  sud- 

1  Isa.  13:6.  a  Isa.  2  : 10-12,  20,  21  (margin). 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELI  VERED.  639 


denly  delivered  from  the  dark  and  terrible  tyranny  of  men 
transformed  to  demons.  Their  faces,  so  lately  pale,  anxious, 
and  haggard,  are  now  aglow  with  wonder,  faith,  and  love. 
Their  voices  rise  in  triumphant  song:  "God  is  our  refuge 
and  strength,  a  very  present  help  in  trouble.  Therefore  will 
not  we  fear,  though  the  earth  be  removed,  and  though  the 
mountains  be  carried  into  the  midst  of  the  sea;  though  the 
waters  thereof  roar  and  be  troubled,  though  the  mountains 
shake  with  the  swelling  thereof." l 

While  these  words  of  holv  trust  ascend  to  God,  the  clouds 
sweep  back,  and  the  starry  heavens  are  .seen,  unspeakably 
glorious  in  contrast  with  the  black  and  angry  firmament 
on  either  side.  The  glory  of  the  celestial  city  streams  from 
the  gates  ajar.  Then  there  appears  against  the  sky  a  hand 
holding  two  tables  of  stone  folded  together.  Says  the  prophet, 
"The  heavens  shall  declare  His  righteousness;  for  God  is 
judge  himself."  *  That  holy  law,  God's  righteousness,  that 
amid  thunder  and  flame  was  proclaimed  from  Sinai  as  the 
guide  of  life,  is  now  revealed  to  men  as  the  rule  of  judgment. 
The  hand  opens  the  tables,  and  there  are  seen  the  precepts 
of  the  decalogue,  traced  as  with  a  pen  of  fire.  The  words 
are  so  plain  that  all  can  read  them.  Memory  is  aroused,  the 
darkness  of  superstition  and  heresy  is  swept  from  every  mind, 
and  God's  ten  words,  brief,  comprehensive,  and  authoritative, 
are  presented  to  the  view  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth. 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  horror  and  despair  of  those 
who  have  trampled  upon  God's  holy  requirements.  The 
Lord  gave  them  his  law ;  they  might  have  compared  their 
characters  with  it,  and  learned  their  defects  while  there  was 
yet  opportunity  for  repentance  and  reform ;  but  in  order  to 
secure  the  favor  of  the  world,  they  set  aside  its  precepts 
and  taught  others  to  transgress.  They  have  endeavored 
to  compel  God's  people  to  profane  his  Sabbath.  Now  they 
are  condemned  by  that  law  which  they  have  despised. 
With  awful  distinctness  they  see  that  they  are  without  ex- 

46:1-3.  2  Pa.  50:6. 


640  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


cuse.  They  chose  whom  they  would  serve  and  worship. 
"  Then  shall  ye  return,  and  discern  between  the  righteous 
and  the  wicked,  between  him  that  serveth  God  and  him 
that  serveth  him  not." l 

The  enemies  of  God's  law,  from  the  ministers  down  to  the 
least  among  them,  have  a  new  conception  of  truth  and  duty. 
Too  late  they  see  that  the  Sabbath  of  the  fourth  command- 
ment is  the  seal  of  the  living  God.  Too  late  they  see  the 
true  nature  of  their  spurious  sabbath,  and  the  sandy  foun- 
dation upon  which  they  have  Jbeen  building.  They  find 
that  they  have  been  fighting  against  God.  Religious  teach- 
ers have  led  souls  to  perdition  while  professing  to  guide  them 
to  the  gates  of  Paradise.  Not  until  the  day  of  final  accounts 
will  it  be  known  how  great  is  the  responsibility  of  men  in 
holy  office,  and  how  terrible  are  the  results  of  their  unfaith- 
fulness. Only  in  eternity  can  we  rightly  estimate  the  loss 
of  a  single  soul.  Fearful  will  be  the  doom  of  him  to  whom 
God  shall  say,  Depart,  thou  wicked  servant. 

The  voice  of  God  is  heard  from  Heaven,  declaring  the 
day  and  hour  of  Jesus'  coming,  and  delivering  the  ever- 
lasting covenant  to  his  people.  Like  peals  of  loudest  thun- 
der, his  words  roll  through  the  earth.  The  Israel  of  God 
stand  listening,  with  their  eyes  fixed  upward.  Their  coun- 
tenances are  lighted  up  with  his  glory,  and  shine  as  did  the 
face  of  Moses  when  he  came  down  from  Sinai.  The  wicked 
cannot  look  upon  them.  And  when  the  blessing  is  pro- 
nounced on  those  who  have  honored  God  by  keeping  his 
Sabbath  holy,  there  is  a  mighty  shout  of  victory. 

Soon  there  appears  in  the  east  a  small  black  cloud,  about 
half  the  size  of  a  man's  hand.  It  is  the  cloud  which  sur- 
rounds the  Saviour,  and  which  seems  in  the  distance  to  be 
shrouded  in  darkness.  The  people  of  God  know  this  to  be 
the  sign  of  the  Son  of  man.  In  solemn  silence  they  gaze 
upon  it  as  it  draws  nearer  the  earth,  becoming  lighter  and 
more  glorious,  until  it  is  a  great  white  cloud,  its  base  a  glory 

lMal.  3:18. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED.  641 


like  consuming  fire,  and  above  it  the  rainbow  of  the  cove- 
nant. Jesus  rides  forth  as  a  mighty  conqueror.  Not  now 
a  "  man  of  sorrows,"  to  drink  the  bitter  cup  of  shame  and 
woe,  he  comes,  victor  in  Heaven  and  earth,  to  judge  the 
living  and  the  dead.  "  Faithful  and  True,"  "  in  righteous- 
ness he  doth  judge  and  make  war."  And  "the  armies  in 
Heaven  follow  him."1  With  anthems  of  celestial  melody 
the  holy  angels,  a  vast,  unnumbered  throng,  attend  him  on 
his  way.  The  firmament  seems  filled  with  radiant  forms, — 
"ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands  of  thou- 
sands." No  human  pen  can  portray  the  scene,  nor  mortal 
mind  is  adequate  to  conceive  its  splendor.  "  His  glory  cov- 
ered the  heavens,  and  the  earth  was  full  of  his  praise.  And 
his  brightness  was  as  the  light.""  As  the  living  cloud 
comes  still  nearer,  every  eye  beholds  the  Prince  of  life.  No 
crown  of  thorns  now  mars  that  sacred  head,  but  a  diadem 
of  glory  rests  on  his  holy  brow.  His  countenance  outshines 
the  dazzling  brightness  of  the  noonday  sun.  "And  he  hath 
on  his  vesture  and  on  his  thigh  a  name  written,  King  of 
kings,  and  Lord  of  lords." 3 

Before  his  presence,  "all  faces  are  turned  into  paleness;" 
upon  the  rejecters  of  God's  mercy  falls  the  terror  of  eternal 
despair.  "  The  heart  melteth,  and  the  knees  smite  together," 
"  and  the  faces  of  them  all  gather  bl  ackness."  *  The  righteous 
cry  with  trembling,  "  Who  shall  be  able  to  stand?"  The 
angels'  song  is  hushed,  and  there  is  a  period  of  awful  silence. 
Then  the  voice  of  Jesus  is  heard,  saying,  "  My  grace  is  suf- 
ficient for  you."  The  faces  of  the  righteous  are  lighted  up, 
and  joy  fills  every  heart.  And  the  angels  strike  a  note 
higher,  and  sing  again,  as  they  draw  still  nearer  to  the  earth. 

The  King  of  kings  descends  upon  the  cloud,  wrapped  in 
flaming  fire.  The  heavens  are  rolled  together  as  a  scroll, 
the  earth  trembles  before  him,  and  every  mountain  and 
island  is  moved  out  of  its  place.  "  Our  God  shall  come,  and 

JRev.  19  : 1 1,  14.  2  Hah.  3  : 3,  4,  8Rev.  19  : 16. 

*Jer.  30:6;  Nah.  2:10. 
46 


642  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

shall  not  keep  silence;  a  fire  shall  devour  before  him,  and 
it  shall  be  very  tempestuous  round  about  him.  He  shall 
call  to  the  heavens  from  above,  and  to  the  earth,  that  he 
may  judge  his  people." l 

"And  the  kings  of  the  earth,  and  the  great  men,  and  the 
rich  men,  and  the  chief  captains,  and  the  mighty  men,  and 
every  bondman,  and  every  freeman,  hid  themselves  in  the 
dens  and  in  the  rocks  of  the  mountains;  and  said  to  the 
mountains  and  rocks,  Fall  on  us,  and  hide  us  from  the  face 
of  Him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  from  the  wrath  of 
the  Lamb ;  for  the  great  day  of  his  wrath  is  come ;  and  who 
shall  be  able  to  stand?  " 2 

The  derisive  jests  have  ceased.  Lying  lips  are  hushed 
into  silence.  The  clash  of  arms,  the  tumult  of  battle,  "  with 
confused  noise,  and  garments  rolled  in  blood,"3  is  stilled. 
Naught  now  is  heard  but  the  voice  of  prayer  and  the  sound 
of  weeping  and  lamentation.  The  cry  bursts  forth  from 
lips  so  lately  scoffing,  "  The  great  day  of  His  wrath  is  come; 
and  who  shall  be  able  to  stand?"  The  wicked  pray  to  be 
buried  beneath  the  rocks  of  the  mountains,  rather  than  meet 
the  face  of  Him  whom  they  have  despised  and  rejected. 

That  voice  which  penetrates  the  ear  of  the  dead,  they 
know.  How  often  have  its  plaintive,  tender  tones  called 
them  to  repentance.  How  often  has  it  been  heard  in  the 
touching  entreaties  of  a  friend,  a  brother,  a  Redeemer.  To 
the  rejecters  of  his  grace,  no  other  could  be  so  full  of  con- 
demnation, so  burdened  with  denunciation,  as  that  voice 
which  has  so  long  pleaded,  "Turn  ye,  turn  ye  from  your 
evil  ways;  for  why  will  ye  die?"4  Oh  that  it  were  to  them 
the  voice  of  a  stranger!  Says  Jesus:  "  I  have  called,  and  ye 
refused;  I  have  stretched  out  my  hand,  and  no  man  re- 
garded. But  ye  have  set  at  naught  all  my  counsel,  and 
would  none  of  my  reproof." 5  That  voice  awakens  memories 
which  they  would  fain  blot  out, — warnings  despised,  invi- 
tations refused,  privileges  slighted. 

1  Ps.  50  : 3,  4.  » Rev.  6  : 15-17.  3  laa.  9  : 5. 

*  Eze.  33  : 11.  5  Frov.  1  : 24,  25. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED.  643 


There  are  those  who  mocked  Christ  in  his  humiliation. 
With  thrilling  power  come  to  their  minds  the  Sufferers 
words,  when,  adjured  by  the  high  priest,  he  solemnly  de- 
clared, "Hereafter  shall  ye  see  the  Son  of  man  sitting 
on  the  right  hand  of  power,  and  coming  in  the  clouds  of 
heaven."1  Now  they  behold  him  in  his  glory,  and  they 
are  yet  to  see  him  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  power. 

Those  who  derided  his  claim  to  be  the  Son  of  God  are 
speechless  now.  There  is  the  haughty  Herod  who  jeered 
at  his  royal  title,  and  bade  the  mocking  soldiers  crown  him 
king.  There  are  the  very  men  who  with  impious  hands 
placed  upon  his  form  the  purple  robe,  upon  his  sacred  brow 
the  thorny  crown,  and  in  his  unresisting  hand  the  mimic 
scepter,  and  bowed  before  him  in  blasphemous  mockery. 
The  men  who  smote  and  spit  upon  the  Prince  of  life,  now 
turn  from  his  piercing  gaze,  and  seek  to  flee  from  the  over- 
powering glory  of  his  presence.  Those  who  drove  the  nails 
through  his  hands  and  feet,  the  soldier  who  pierced  his  side, 
behold  these  marks  with  terror  and  remorse. 

With  awful  distinctness  do  priests  and  rulers  recall  the 
events  of  Calvary.  With  shuddering  horror  they  remember 
how,  wagging  their  heads  in  Satanic  exultation,  they  ex- 
claimed, "He  saved  others;  himself  he  cannot  save.  If  he 
be  the  King  of  Israel,  let  him  now  come  down  from  the 
cross,  and  we  will  believe  him.  He  trusted  in  God ;  let  him 
deliver  him  now,  if  he  will  have  him." a 

Vividly  they  recall  the  Saviour's  parable  of  the  husband- 
men who  refused  to  render  to  their  lord  the  fruit  of  the 
vineyard,  who  abused  his  servants  and  slew  his  son.  They 
remember,  too,  the  sentence  which  they  themselves  pro- 
nounced :  The  lord  of  the  vineyard  will  miserably  destroy 
those  wicked  men.  In  the  sin  and  punishment  of  those 
unfaithful  men,  the  priests  and  elders  see  their  own  course 
and  their  own  just  doom.  And  now  there  rises  a  cry  of 
mortal  agony.  Louder  than  the  shout,  "  Crucify  him!  cru- 
cify him!"  which  rang  through  the  streets  of  Jerusalem, 

1  Matt,  26  : 64.  2  Matt.  27  : 42,  43. 


644  777^  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

swells  the  awful,  despairing  wail,  "  He  is  the  Son  of  God ! 
He  is  the  true  Messiah ! "  They  seek  to  flee  from  the  pres- 
ence of  the  King  of  kings.  In  the  deep  caverns  of  the  earth, 
rent  asunder  by  the  warring  of  the  elements,  they  vainly 
attempt  to  hide. 

In  the  lives  of  all  who  reject  truth,  there  are  moments 
when  conscience  awakens,  when  memory  presents  the  tor- 
turing recollection  of  a  life  of  hypocrisy,  and  the  soul  is  har- 
assed with  vain  regrets.  But  what  are  these  compared  with 
the  remorse  of  that  day  when  "fear  cometh  as  desolation," 
when  "destruction  cometh  as  a  whirlwind!"1  Those  who 
would  have  destroyed  Christ  and  his  faithful  people,  now 
witness  the  glory  which  rests  upon  them.  In  the  midst  of 
their  terror  they  hear  the  voices  of  the  saints  in  joyful  strains 
exclaiming,  "Lo,  this  is  our  God;  we  have  waited  for  him, 
and  he  will  save  us."2 

Amid  the  reeling  of  the  earth,  the  flash  of  lightning,  and 
the  roar  of  thunder,  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God  calls  forth 
the  sleeping  saints.  He  looks  upon  the  graves  of  the  right- 
eous, then  raising  his  hands  to  heaven  he  cries,  "Awake, 
awake,  awake,  ye  that  sleep  in  the  dust,  and  arise ! "  Through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  the  earth,  the  dead  shall  hear 
that  voice;  and  they  that  hear  shall  live.  And  the  whole 
earth  shall  ring  with  the  tread  of  the  exceeding  great  army 
of  every  nation,  kindred,  tongue,  and  people.  From  the 
prison-house  of  death  they  come,  clothed  with  immortal 
glory,  crying,  "O  death,  where  is  thy  sting?  0  grave,  wrhere 
is  thy  victory?"3  And  the  living  righteous  and  the  risen 
saints  unite  their  voices  in  a  long,  glad  shout  of  victory. 

All  come  forth  from  their  graves  the  same  in  stature  as 
when  they  entered  the  tomb.  Adam,  who  stands  among 
the  risen  throng,  is  of  lofty  height  and  majestic  form,  in 
stature  but '  little  below  the  Son  of  (Jod.  JIc  presents  a 
marked  contrast  to  the  people  of  later  generations;  in  this 
one  respect  is  shown  the  great  degeneracy  of  the  race.  But 
1  Prov.  1 :  27.  3 Isa.  25 : 9.  3 1  Cor.  15 : 55. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED. 


645 


all  arise  with  the  freshness  and  vigor  of  eternal  youth.  In 
the  beginning,  man  was  created  in  the  likeness  of  God,  not 
only  in  character,  but  in  form  and  feature.  Sin  defaced  and 
almost  obliterated  the  divine  image;  but  Christ  came  to 
restore  that  which  had  been  lost.  He  will  change  our  vile 
bodies,  and  fashion  them  like  unto  his  glorious  body.  The 
mortal,  corruptible  form,  devoid  of  comeliness,  once  polluted 
with  sin,  becomes  perfect,  beautiful,  and  immortal.  All 
blemishes  and  deformities  are  left  in  the  grave.  Restored 
to  the  tree  of  life  in  the  long-lost  Eden,  the  redeemed  will 
"  grow  up  " l  to  the  full  stature  of  the  race  in  its  primeval 
glory.  The  last  lingering  traces  of  the  curse  of  sin  will  be 
removed,  and  Christ's  faithful  ones  will  appear  "in  the 
beauty  of  the  Lord  our  God ; "  in  mind  and  soul  and  body 
reflecting  the  perfect  image  of  their  Lord.  Oh,  wonderful 
redemption!  long  talked  of,  long  hoped  for,  contemplated 
with  eager  anticipation,  but  never  fully  understood. 

The  living  righteous  are  changed  "in  a  moment,  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye."  At  the  voice  of  God  they  were  glo- 
rified; now  they  are  made  immortal,  and  with  the  risen 
saints  are  caught  up  to  meet  their  Lord  in  the  air.  Angels 
"gather  together  the  elect  from  the  four  winds,  from  one 
end  of  heaven  to  the  other."  Little  children  are  borne  by 
holy  angels  to  their  mothers'  arms.  Friends  long  separated 
by  death  are  united,  nevermore  to  part,  and  with  songs  of 
gladness  ascend  together  to  the  city  of  God. 

On  each  side  of  the  cloudy  chariot  are  wings,  and  beneath 
it  are  living  wheels;  and  as  the  chariot  rolls  upward,  the 
wheels  cry,  "  Holy,"  and  the  wings,  as  they  move,  cry, 
"  Holy,"  and  the  retinue  of  angels  cry,  "  Holy,  holy,  holy, 
Lord  God  Almighty."  And  the  redeemed  shout  "  Alleluia ! " 
as  the  chariot  moves  onward  toward  the  New  Jerusalem. 

Before  entering  the  city  of  God,  the  Saviour  bestows  upon 
his  followers  the  emblems  of  victory,  and  invests  them  with 
the  insignia  of  their  royal  state.  The  glittering  ranks  are 

*Mal.  4:2. 


64.fi  THE  ORE  A  T  CON  TR  0  I  'Kits  } '. 

drawn  up,  in  the  form  of  a  hollow  square,  about  their  King, 
whose  form  rises  in  majesty  high  above  saint  and  angel, 
whose  countenance  beams  upon  them  full  of  benignant  love. 
Throughout  the  unnumbered  host  of  the  redeemed,  every 
glance  is  fixed  upon  him,  every  eye  beholds  His  glory  whose 
"  visage  was  so  marred  more  than  any  man,  and  his  form 
more  than  the  sons  of  men."  Upon  the  heads  of  the  over- 
comers,  Jesus  with  his  own  right  hand  places  the  crown  of 
glory.  For  each  there  is  a  crown,  bearing  his  own  "new 
name,"1  and  the  inscription,  "Holiness  to  the  Lord."  In 
every  hand  are  placed  the  victor's  palm  and  the  shining 
harp.  Then,  as  the  commanding  angels  strike  the  note, 
every  hand  sweeps  the  harp  strings  with  skillful  touch, 
awaking  sweet  music  in  rich,  melodious  strains.  Rapture 
unutterable  thrills  every  heart,  and  each  voice  is  raised  in 
grateful  praise:  "Unto  Him  that  loved  us,  and  washed  us 
from  our  sins  in  his  own  blood,  and  hath  made  us  kings 
and  priests  unto  God  and  his  Father;  to  him  be  glory  and 
dominion  forever  and  ever." 2 

Before  the  ransomed  throng  is  the  holy  city.  Jesus  opens 
wide  the  pearly  gates,  and  the  nations  that  have  kept  the 
truth  enter  in.  There  they  behold  the  Paradise  of  God,  the 
home  of  Adam  in  his  innocency.  Then  that  voice,  richer 
than  any  music  that  ever  fell  on  mortal  ear,  is  heard,  say- 
ing, " Your •  conflict  is  ended."  "Come,  ye  blessed  of  my 
Father,  inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world." 

Now  is  fulfilled  the  Saviour's  prayer  for  his  disciples,  "I 
will  that  they  also  whom  thou  hast  given  me  be  with  me 
where  I  am."  "  Faultless  before  the  presence  of  His  glory 
with  exceeding  joy," s  Christ  presents  to  the  Father  the  pur- 
chase of  his  blood,  declaring,  "  Here  am  I,  and  the  children 
whom  thou  hast  given  me."  "  Those  that  thou  gavest  me 
I  have  kept."  Oh,  the  wonders  of  redeeming  love!  the 
rapture  of  that  hour  when  the  infinite  Father,  looking 

1Rev.  2:17.  2Rev.l:5,  6.  »Jude24. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED.  64? 

upon  the  ransomed,  shall  behold  his  image,  sin's  discord 
banished,  its  blight  removed,  and  the  human  once  more  in 
harmony  with  the  divine ! 

With  unutterable  love,  Jesus  welcomes  his  faithful  ones 
to  the  "joy  of  their  Lord."  The  Saviour's  joy  is  in  seeing, 
in  the  kingdom  of  glory,  the  souls  that  have  been  saved  by 
his  agony  and  humiliation.  And  the  redeemed  will  be 
sharers  in  this  joy,  as  they  behold,  among  the  blessed,  those 
who  have  been  won  to  Christ  through  their  prayers,  their 
labors,  and  loving  sacrifice.  As  they  gather  about  the  great 
white  throne,  gladness  unspeakable  will  fill  their  hearts, 
when  they  behold  those  whom  they  have  won  for  Christ,  and 
see  that  one  has  gained  others,  and  these  still  others,  all 
brought  into  the  haven  of  rest,  there  to  lay  their  crowns  at 
Jesus'  feet,  and  praise  him  through  the  endless  cycles  of 
eternity. 

As  the  ransomed  ones  are  welcomed  to  the  city  of  God, 
there  rings  out  upon  the  air  an  exultant  cry  of  adoration. 
The  two  Adams  are  about  to  meet.  The  Son  of  God  is 
standing  with  outstretched  arms  to  receive  the  father  of  our 
race, — the  being  whom  he  created,  who  sinned  against  his 
Maker,  and  for  whose  sin  the  marks  of  the  crucifixion  are 
borne  upon  the  Saviour's  form.  As  Adam  discerns  the 
prints  of  the  cruel  nails,  he  does  not  fall  upon  the  bosom 
of  his  Lord,  but  in  humiliation  casts  himself  at  his  feet, 
crying,  "Worthy,  worthy  is  the  Lamb  that  was  slain!" 
Tenderly  the  Saviour  lifts  him  up,  and  bids  him  look  once 
more  upon  the  Eden  home  from  which  he  has  so  long  been 
exiled. 

After  his  expulsion  from  Eden,  Adam's  life  on  earth  was 
filled  with  sorrow.  Every  dying  leaf,  every  victim  of  sac- 
rifice, every  blight  upon  the  fair  face  of  nature,  every  stain 
upon  man's  purity,  was  afresh  reminder  of .liis  siu.  Ter- 
rible was  the  agony  of  remorse  as  he  beheld  iniquity  abound- 
ing, and,  in  answer  to  his  warnings,  met  the  reproach os  cast 
upon  himself  as  the  cause  of  sin.-  With  patient  humility 


648  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


he  bore,  for  nearly  a  thousand  years,  the  penalty  of  trans- 
gression. Faithfully  did  he  repent  of  his  sin,  and  trust  in 
the  merits  of  the  promised  Saviour,  and  he  died  in  the  hope 
of  a  resurrection.  The  Son  of  God  redeemed  man's  failure 
and  fall,  and  now,  through  the  work  of  the  atonement,  Adam 
is  re-instated  in  his  first  dominion. 

Transported  with  joy,  he  beholds  the  trees  that  were  once 
his  delight, — the  very  trees  whose  fruit  he  himself  had  gath- 
ered in  the  days  of  his  innocence  and  joy.  He  sees  the  vines 
that  his  own  hands  have  trained,  the  very  flowers  that  he 
once  loved  to  care  for.  His  mind  grasps  the  reality  of  the 
scene;  he  comprehends  that  this  is  indeed  Eden  restored, 
more  lovely  now  than  when  he  was  banished  from  it.  The 
Saviour  leads  him  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  plucks  the  glorious 
fruit,  and  bids  him  eat.  He  looks  about  him,  and  beholds 
a  multitude  of  his  family  redeemed,  standing  in  the  Paradise 
of  God.  Then  he  casts  his  glittering  crown  at  the  feet  of 
Jesus,  and,  falling  upon  his  breast,  embraces  the  Redeemer. 
He  touches  the  golden  harp,  and  the  vaults  of  Heaven  echo 
the  triumphant  song,  "Worthy,  worthy,  worthy  is  the  Lamb 
that  was  slain,  and  lives  again!  "  The  family  of  Adam  take 
up  the  strain,  and  cast  their  crowns  at  the  Saviour's  feet  as 
they  bow  before  him  in  adoration. 

This  reunion  is  witnessed  by  the  angels  who  wept  at  the 
fall  of  Adam,  and  rejoiced  when  Jesus,  after  his  resurrection, 
ascended  to  Heaven,  having  opened  the  grave  for  all  who 
should  believe  on  his  name.  Now  they  behold  the  work 
of  redemption  accomplished,  and  they  unite  their  voices  in 
the  song  of  praise. 

Upon  the  crystal  sea  before  the  throne,  that  sea  of  glass 
as  it  were  mingled  with  fire, — so  resplendent  is  it  with  the 
glory  of  God, — are  gathered  the  company  that  have  "gotten 
li.,  victory  over  the.  beast,  and  over  his  image,  and  over  his 
11 1. -irk.  a;  id  over"  the  number  of  his  name."1  With  the  Lamb 
upon  Mount  /ion,  "having  the  harps  of  God,"  they  stand, 

.  15:2. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED.  649 


the  hundred  and  forty  and  four  thousand  that  were  re- 
deemed from  among  men ;  and  there  is  heard,  as  the  sound 
of  many  waters,  and  as  the  sound  of  a  great  thunder,  "  the 
voice  of  harpers  harping  with  their  harps." l  And  they  sing 
"  a  new  song  "  before  the  throne,  a  song  which  no  man  can 
learn  save  the  hundred  and  forty  and  four  thousand.  It 
is  the  song  of  Moses  and  the  Lamb, — a  song  of  deliverance. 
None  but  the  hundred  and  forty-four  thousand  can  learn 
that  song;  for  it  is  the  song  of  their  experience, — an  ex- 
.  perience  such  as  no  other  company  have  ever  had.  "  These 
are  they  which  follow  the  Lamb  whithersoever  he  goeth." 
These,  having  been  translated  from  the  earth,  from  among 
the  living,  are  counted  as  "the  first-fruits  unto  God  and  to 
the  Lamb."  "These  are  they  which  came  out  of  great 
tribulation;"1  they  have  passed  through  the  time  of  trouble 
such  as  never  was  since  there  was  a  nation ;  they  have  en- 
dured the  anguish  of  the  time  of  Jacob's  trouble;  they  have 
stood  without  an  intercessor  through  the  final  outpouring 
of  God's  judgments.  But  they  have  been  delivered,  for  they 
have  "washed  their  robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the 
blood  of  the  Lamb."  "In  their  mouth  was  found  no  guile; 
for  they  are  without  fault"  before  God.  "Therefore  are  they 
before  the  throne  of  God,  and  serve  him  day  and  night  in 
his  temple;  and  he  that  sitteth  on  the  throne  shall  dwell 
among  them."1  They  have  seen  the  earth  wasted  with, 
famine  and  pestilence,  the  sun  having  power  to  scorch  men 
with  great  heat,  and  they  themselves  have  endured  suffering, 
hunger,  and  thirst.  But  "they  shall  hunger  no  more;  nei- 
ther thirst  any  more;  neither  shall  the  sun  light  on  them, 
nor  any  heat;  for  the  Lamb  which  is  in  the  midst  of  the 
throne  shall  feed  them,  and  shall  lead  them  unto  living 
fountains  of  waters;  and  God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from 
their  eyes."  ' 

In  all  ages  the  Saviour's  chosen  have  been  educated  and 
disciplined  in  the  school  of  trial.     They  walked  in  narrow 
1  Rev.  14:1-5;  18:3;  7:14-17. 


650  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


paths  on  earth;  they  were  purified  in  the  furnace  of  afflic- 
tion. For  Jesus' *sake  they  endured  opposition,  hatred,  cal- 
umny. They  followed  him  through  conflicts  sore;  they 
endured  self-denial  and  experienced  bitter  disappointments. 
By  their  own  painful  experience  they  learned  the  evil  of 
sin,  its  power,  its  guilt,  its  woe;  and  they  look  upon  it  with 
abhorrence.  A  sense  of  the  infinite  sacrifice  made  for  its 
cure,  humbles  them  in  their  own  sight,  and  fills  their  hearts 
with  gratitude  and  praise  which  those  who  have  never  fallen 
cannot  appreciate.  They  love  much,  because  they  have  been 
forgiven  much.  Having  been  partakers  of  Christ's  suffer- 
ings, they  are  fitted  to  be  partakers  with  him  of  his  glory. 

The  heirs  of  God  have  come  from  garrets,  from  hovels, 
from  dungeons,  from  scaffolds,  from  mountains,  from  deserts, 
from  the  caves  of  the  earth,  from  the  caverns  of  the  sea. 
On  earth  they  were  "  destitute,  afflicted,  tormented."  Mill- 
ions went  down  to  the  grave  loaded  with  infamy,  because 
they  steadfastly  refused  to  yield  to  the  deceptive  claims  of 
Satan.  By  human,  tribunals  they  were  adjudged  the  vilest 
of  criminals.  But  now  "God  is  judge  himself."1  Now  the 
decisions  of  earth  are  reversed.  "  The  rebuke  of  his  people 
shall  he  take  away." 2  "  They  shall  call  them,  The  holy  peo- 
ple, The  redeemed  of  the  Lord."  He  hath  appointed  "to 
give  unto  them  beauty  for  ashes,  the  oil  of  joy  for  mourn- 
.ing,  the  garment  of  praise  for  the  spirit  of  heaviness."1 
They  are  no  longer  feeble,  afflicted,  scattered,  and  oppressed. 
Henceforth  they  are  to  be  ever  with  the  Lord.  They  stand 
before  the  throne  clad  in  richer  robes  than  the  most  honored 
of  the  earth  have  ever  worn.  They  are  crowned  with  dia- 
dems more  glorious  than  were  ever  placed  upon  the  brow  of 
earthly  monarchs.  The  days  of  pain  and  weeping  are  for- 
ever ended.  The  King  of  glory  has  wiped  the  tears  from 
all  faces;  every  cause  of  grief  has  been  removed.  Amid 
the  waving  of  palm-branches  they  pour  forth  a  song  of 
praise,  clear,  sweet,  and  harmonious ;  every  voice  takes  up 

^s.  50:6.         3Isa.25:8-          "  Isa.  62  : 12;  61 : 3. 


GOD'S  PEOPLE  DELIVERED. 


651 


the  strain,  until  the  anthem  swells  through  the  vaults  of 
Heaven,  "Salvation  to  our  God  which  sitteth  upon  the 
throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb."  And  all  the  inhabitants  of 
Heaven  respond  in  the  ascription,  "Amen:  Blessing,  and 
glory,  and  wisdom,  and  thanksgiving,  and  honor,  and  power, 
and  might,  be  unto  our  God  forever  and  ever." 

In  this  life  we  can  only  begin  to  understand  the  wonder- 
ful theme  of  redemption.  With  our  finite  comprehension 
we  may  consider  most  earnestly  the  shame  and  the  glory* 
the  life  and  the  death,  the  justice  and  the  mercy,  that  meet 
in  the  cross;  yet  with  the  utmost  stretch  of  our  mental  pow- 
ers we  fail  to  grasp  its  full  significance.  The  length  and 
the  breadth,  the  depth  and  the  height  of  redeeming  love 
are  but  dimly  comprehended.  The  plan  of  redemption  will 
not  be  fully  understood,  even  when  the  ransomed  see  as  they 
are  seen  and  know  as  they  are  known;  but  through  the 
eternal  ages,  new  truth  will  continually  unfold  to  the  won- 
dering and  delighted  mind.  Though  the  griefs  and  pains 
and  temptations  of  earth  are  ended,  and  the  cause  removed, 
the  people  of  God  will  ever  have  a  distinct,  intelligent  knowl- 
edge of  what  their  salvation  has  cost. 

The  cross  of  Christ  will  be  the  science  and  the  song  of 
the  redeemed  through  all  eternity.  In  Christ  glorified  they 
will  behold  Christ  crucified.  Never  will  it  be  forgotten  that 
He  whose  powrer  created  and  upheld  the  unnumbered  worlds 
through  the  vast  realms  of  space,  the  Beloved  of  God,  the 
Majesty  of  Heaven,  He  whom  cherub  and  shining  seraph 
delighted  to  adore, — humbled  himself  to  uplift  fallen  man ; 
that  he  bore  the  guilt  and  shame  of  sin,  and  the  hiding  of 
his  Father's  face,  till  the  woes  of  a  lost  world  broke  his  heart, 
and  crushed  out  his  life  on  Calvary's  cross.  That  the  Maker 
of  all  worlds,  the  Arbiter  of  all  destinies,  should  lay  aside 
his  glory,  and  humiliate  himself  from  love  to  man,  will 
ever  excite  the  wonder  and  adoration  of  the  universe.  As 
the  nations  of  the  saved  look  upon  their  Redeemer,  and  be- 

JRev.  7:10,  12. 


652  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


hold  the  eternal  glory  of  the  Father  shining  in  his  counte- 
nance; as  they  behold  his  throne,  which  is  from  everlasting 
to  everlasting,  and  know  that  his  kingdom  is  to  have  no  end, 
they  break  forth  in  rapturous  song,  "  Worthy,  worthy  is  the 
Lamb  that  was  slain,  and  hath  redeemed  us  to  God  by  his 
own  most  precious  blood ! " 

The  mystery  of  the  cross  explains  all  other  mysteries.  In 
the  light  that  streams  from  Calvary,  the  attributes  of  God 
which  had  filled  us  with  fear  and  awe  appear  beautiful  and 
attractive.  Mercy,  tenderness,  and  parental  love  are  seen  to 
blend  with  holiness,  justice,  and  power.  While  we  behold 
the  majesty  of  his  throne,  high  and  lifted  up,  we  see  his 
character  in  its  gracious  manifestations,  and  comprehend, 
as  never  before,  the  significance  of  that  endearing  title,  our 
Father. 

It  will  be  seen  that  He  who  is  infinite  in  wisdom  could 
devise  no  plan  for  our  salvation  except  the  sacrifice  of  his 
Son.  The  compensation  for  this  sacrifice  is  the  joy  of  peo- 
pling the  earth  with  ransomed  beings,  holy,  happy,  and 
immortal.  The  result  of  the  Saviour's  conflict  with  the 
powers  of  darkness  is  joy  to  the  redeemed,  redounding  to 
the  glory  of  God,  throughout  eternity.  And  such  is  the 
value  of  the  soul  that  the  Father  is  satisfied  with  the  price 
paid ;  and  Christ  himself,  beholding  the  fruits  of  his  great 
sacrifice,  is  satisfied. 


CHAPTER    XLI. 


DESOLATION   OF  THE   EARTH. 

"HER  sins  have  reached  unto  heaven,  and  God  hath 
remembered  her  iniquities."  "  In  the  cup  which  she  hath 
filled,  fill  to  her  double.  How  much  she  hath  glorified  her- 
self, and  lived  deliciously,  so  much  torment  and  sorrow  give 
her;  for  she  saith  in  her  heart,  I  sit  a  queen,  and  am  no 
widow,  and  shall  see  no  sorrow.  Therefore  shall  her  plagues 
come  in  one  day,  death,  and  mourning,  and  famine;  and 
she  shall  be  utterly  burned  with  fire;  for  strong  is  the  Lord 
God  who  judgeth  her.  And  the  kings  of  the  earth,  who 
have  committed  fornication  and  lived  deliciously  with  her, 
shall  bewail  her,  and  lament  for  her,  ...  saying,  Alas, 
alas  that  great  city  Babylon,  that  mighty  city!  for  in  one 
hour  is  thy  judgment  come." ! 

"The  merchants  of  the  earth,"  that  have  "waxed  rich 
through  the  abundance  of  her  delicacies,"  "  shall  stand  afar 
off  for  the  fear  of  her  torment,  weeping  and  wailing,  and 
saying,  Alas,  alas  that  great  city,  that  was  clothed  in  fine 
linen,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,  and  decked  with  gold,  and 
precious  stones,  and  pearls !  For  in  one  hour  so  great  riches 
is  come  to  naught." l 

Such  are  the  judgments  that  fall  upon  Babylon  in  the 
day  of  the  visitation  of  God's  wrath.  She  has  filled  up  the 
measure  of  her  iniquity;  her  time  has  come;  she  is  ripe  for 
destruction. 

When  the  voice  of  God  turns  the  captivity  of  his  people, 
there  is  a  terrible  awakening  of  those  who  have  lost  all  in 
the  great  conflict  of  life.  While  probation  continued,  they 
were  blinded  by  Satan's  deceptions,  and  they  justified  their 

.  18:5-10,  3,  15-17. 

(8M) 


654  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


course  of  sin.  The  rich  prided  themselves  upon  their  supe- 
riority to  those  who  were  less  favored;  but  they  had  ob- 
tained their  riches  by  violation  of  the  law  of  God.  They 
had  neglected  to  feed  the  hungry,  to  clothe  the  naked,  to 
deal  justly,  and  to  love  mercy.  They  had  sought  to  exalt 
themselves,  and  to  obtain  the  homage  of  their  fellow-creat- 
ures. Now  they  are  stripped  of  all  that  made  them  great, 
and  are  left  destitute  and  defenseless.  They  look  with  terror 
upon  the  destruction  of  the  idols  which  they  preferred  be- 
fore their  Maker.  They  have  sold  their  souls  for  earthly 
riches  and  enjoyments,  and  have  not  sought  to  become  rich 
toward  God.  The  result  is,  their  lives  are  a  failure;  their 
pleasures  are  now  turned  to  gall,  their  treasures  to  corrup- 
tion. The  gain  of  a  life-time  is  swept  away  in  a  moment. 
The  r;ch  bemoan  the  destruction  of  their  grand  houses,  the 
scattering  of  their  gold  and  silver.  But  their  lamentations 
are  silenced  by  the  fear  that  they  themselves  are  to  perish 
with  their  idols. 

The  wicked  are  filled  with  regret,  not  because  of  their 
sinful  neglect  of  God  and  their  fellow-men,  but  because  God 
has  conquered.  They  lament  that  the  result  is  what  it  is; 
but  they  do  not  repent  of  their  wickedness.  They  would 
leave  no  means  untried  to  conquer  if  they  could. 

The  world  see  the  very  class  whom  they  have  mocked 
and  derided,  and  desired  to  exterminate,  pass  unharmed 
through  pestilence,  tempest,  and  earthquake.  He  who  is 
to  the  transgressors  of  his  law  a  devouring  fire,  is  to  his 
people  a  safe  pavilion. 

The  minister  who  lias  sacrificed  trutli  to  gain  the  favor 
of  men,  now  discerns  the  character  and  influence  of  his 
teachings.  It  is  apparent  that  an  omniscient  eye  was  fol- 
lowing him  as  he  stood  in  the  desk,  as  he  walked  the  streets, 
as  he  mingled  with  men  in  the  various  scenes  of  life.  Every 
emotion  of  the  soul,  every  line  written,  every  word  uttered, 
every  act  that  led  men  to  rest  in  a  refuge  of  falsehood,  has 
been  scattering  seed;  ;m<l  now,  in  the  wretched,  lost  souls 
around  him,  he  beholds  the  harvest. 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  EARTH.  655 

Saith  the  Lord:  "They  have  healed  the  hurt  of  the 
daughter  of  my  people  slightly,  saying,  Peace,  peace;  when 
there  is  no  peace."  "With  lies  ye  have  made  the  heart 
of  the  righteous  sad,  whom  I  have  not  made  sad;  and 
strengthened  the  hands  of  the  wicked,  that  he  should  not 
return  from  His  wicked  way,  by  promising  him  life."  * 

"  Woe  be  unto  the  pastors  tl^at  destroy  and  scatter  the 
sheep  of  my  pasture !  .  .  .  Behold,  I  will  visit  upon  you 
the  evil  of  your  doings."  "Howl,  ye  shepherds,  and  cry; 
and  wallow  yourselves  in  the  ashes,  ye  principal  of  the  flock; 
for  your  days  for  slaughter  and  your  dispersions  are  accom- 
plished; .  .  .  and  the  shepherds  shall  have  no  way  to 
flee,  nor  the  principal  of  the  flock  to  escape." 2 

Ministers  and  people  see  that  they  have  not  sustained  the 
right  relation  to  God.  They  see  that  they  have  rebelled 
against  the  Author  of  all  just  and  righteous  law.  The  set- 
ting aside  of  the  divine  precepts  gave  rise  to  thousands  of 
springs  of  evil,  discord,  hatred,  iniquity,  until  the  earth 
became  one  vast  field  of  strife,  one  sink  of  corruption.  This 
is  the  view  that  now  appears  to  those  who  rejected  truth 
and  chose  to  cherish  error.  No  language  can  express  the 
longing  which  the  disobedient  and  disloyal  feel  for  that 
which  they  have  lost  forever, — eternal  life.  Men  whom  the 
world  has  worshiped  for  their  talents  and  eloquence  now 
see  these  things  in  their  true  light.  They  realize  what  they 
have  forfeited  by  transgression,  and  they  fall  at  the  feet  of 
those  whose  fidelity  they  have  despised  and  derided,  and 
confess  that  God  has  loved  them. 

The  people  see  that  they  have  been  deluded.  They  accuse 
one  another  of  having  led  them  to  destruction;  but  all  unite 
in  heaping  their  bitterest  condemnation  upon  the  ministers. 
Unfaithful  pastors  have  prophesied  smooth  things;  they 
have  led  their  hearers  to  make  void  the  law  of  God  and  to 
persecute  those  who  would  keep  it  holy.  Now,  in  their 
despair,  these  teachers  confess  before  the  world  their  work 
of  deception.  The  multitudes  are  filled  with  fury.  "  We 

i  Jer.  8:11;  Eze.  13  : 22,         3  Jer.  23  : 1,  2;  25  : 34,  35  (margin). 


656  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


are  lost! "  they  cry,  " and  you  are  the  cause  of  our  ruin; "  and 
they  turn  upon  the  false  shepherds.  The  very  ones  that  once 
admired  them  most,  will  pronounce  the  most  dreadful  curses 
upon  them.  The  very  hands  that  once  crowned  them  with 
laurels  will  be  raised  for  their  destruction.  The  swords  which 
were  to  slay  God's  people  are  now  employed  to  destroy  their 
enemies.  Everywhere  there  is  strife  and  bloodshed. 

"A  noise  shall  come  even  to  the  ends  of  the  earth;  for  the 
Lord  hath  a  controversy  with  the  nations :  he  will  plead  with 
all  flesh;  he  will  give  them  that  are  wicked  to  the  sword." l 
For  six  thousand  years  the  great  controversy  has  been  in 
progress;  the  Son  of  God  and  his  heavenly  messengers  have 
bmi  in  conflict  with  the  power  of  the  evil  one,  to  warn,  en- 
lighten, and  save  the  children  of  men.  Now  all  have  made 
their  decision;  the  wicked  have  fully  united  with  Satan  in 
his  -warfare  against  God.  The  time  has  come  for  God  to 
vindicate  the  authority  of  his  downtrodden  law.  Now  the 
controversy  is  not  alone  with  Satan,  but  with  men.  "  The 
Lord  hath  a  controversy  with  the  nations;"  "he  will  give 
them  that  are  wicked  to  the  sword." 

The  mark  of  deliverance  has  been  set  upon  those  "  that 
sigh  and  that  cry  for  all  the  abominations  that  be  done." 
Now  the  angel  of  death  goes  forth,  represented  in  Ezekiel's 
vision  by  the  men  with  the  slaughtering  weapons,  to  whom 
the  command  is  given:  "  Slay  utterly  old  and  young,  boil i 
maids,  and  little  children,  and  women ;  but  come  not  near 
any  man  upon  whom  is  the  mark;  and  begin 'at  my  sanct- 
uary." *  Says  the  prophet,  "  They  began  at  the  ancient  men 
which  were  before  the  house."2  The  work  of  destruction 
begins  among  those  who  have  professed  to  be  the  spiritual 
guardians  of  the  people.  The  false  watchmen  are  the  first 
to  fall.  There  are  none  to  pity  or  to  spare.  Men,  women, 
maidens,  and  little  children  perish  together. 

"  The  Lord  cometh  out  of  his  place  to  punish  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  earth  for  their  iniquity;  the  earth  also  shall 
disclose  her  blood,  and  shall  no  more  cover  her  slain."3 

1  Jer.  25  : 31.  3  Eze.  9:1-6.  3  Isa.  26  : 21. 


DESOLATION  OF  TllK  EARTH. 


657 


"And  this  shall  be  the  plague  wherewith  the  Lord  will  smite 
all  the  people  that  have  fought  against  Jerusalem:  Their 
flesh  shall  consume  away  while  they  stand  upon  their  feet, 
and  their  eyes  shall  consume  away  in  their  holes,  and  their 
tongue  shall  consume  away  in  their  mouth.  And  it  shall 
come  to  pass  in  that  day  that  a  great  tumult  from  the  Lord 
shall  be  among  them;  and  they  shall  lay  hold  every  one 
on  the  hand  of  his  neighbor,  and  his  hand  shall  rise  up 
against  the  hand  of  his  neighbor."  *  In  the  mad  strife  of 
their  own  fierce  passions,  and  by  the  awful  outpouring  of 
God's  unmingled  wrath,  fall  the  wicked  inhabitants  of  the 
earth, — priests,  rulers,  and  people,  rich  and  poor,  high  and 
low.  "  And  the  slain  of  the  Lord  shall  be  at  that  day  from 
one  end  of  the  earth  even  unto  the  other  end  of  the  earth; 
they  shall  not  be  lamented,  neither  gathered,  nor  buried."2 

At  the  coming  of  Christ  the  wicked  are  blotted  from  the 
face  of  the  whole  earth, — consumed  with  the  spirit  of  his 
mouth,  and  destroyed  by  the  brightness  of  his  glory.  Christ 
takes  his  people  to  the  city  of  God,  and  the  earth  is  emptied 
of  its  inhabitants.  "Behold,  the  Lord  maketh  the  earth 
empty,  and  maketh  it  waste,  and  turneth  it  upside  down, 
and  scattereth  abroad  the  inhabitants  thereof."  "The  land 
shall  be  utterly  emptied,  and  utterly  spoiled ;  for  the  Lord 
hath  spoken  this  word."  "Because  they  have  transgressed 
the  laws,  changed  the  ordinance,  broken  the  everlasting 
covenant.  Therefore  hath  the  curse  devoured  the  earth,  and 
they  that  dwell  therein  are  desolate;  therefore  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  earth  are  burned."3 

The  whole  earth  appears  like  a  desolate  wilderness.  The 
ruins  of  cities  and  villages  destroyed  by  the  earthquake, 
uprooted  trees,  ragged  rocks  thrown  out  by  the  sea  or  torn 
out  of  the  earth  itself,  are  scattered  over  its  surface,  while 
vast  caverns  mark  the  spot  where  the  mountains  have  been 
rent  from  their  foundations. 

Now  the  event  takes  place,  foreshadowed  in  the  last  solemn 

1  Zech.  14  : 12,  13.       "  Jer.  25  :  33.      3  Isa.  24  : 1,  3,  5,  6. 

47 


658  THE   GREAT   CONTROVERSY. 


service  of  the  day  of  atonement.  When  the  ministration 
in  the  holy  of  holies  had  been  completed,  and  the  sins  01 
Israel  had  been  removed  from  the  sanctuary  by  virtue  of 
the  blood  of  the  sin-offering,  then  the  scape-goat  was  pre- 
sented alive  before  the  Lord;  and  in  presence  of  the  con- 
gregation the  high  priest  confessed  over  him  "all  the  in- 
iquities of  the  children  of  Israel,  and  all  their  transgressions 
in  all  their  sins,  putting  them  upon  the  head  of  the  goat." l 
In  like  manner,  when  the  work  of  atonement  in  the  heav- 
enly sanctuary  has  been  completed,  then  in  the  presence  of 
God  and  heavenly  angels,  and  the  host  of  the  redeemed,  the 
sins  of  God's  people  will  be  placed  upon  Satan;  he  will  be 
declared  guilty  of  all  the  evil  which  he  has  caused  them  to 
commit.  And  as  the  scape-goat  wTas  sent  away  into  a  land 
not  inhabited,  so  Satan  will  be  banished  to  the  desolate  earth, 
an  uninhabited  and  dreary  wilderness. 

The  Revelator  foretells  the  banishment  of  Satan,  and  the 
condition  of  chaos  and  desolation  to  which  the  earth  is  to 
be  reduced;  and  he  declares  that  this  condition  will  exist 
for  a  thousand  years.  After  presenting  the  scenes  of  the 
Lord's  second  coming  and  the  destruction  of  the  wicket  1, 
the  prophecy  continues:  "I  saw  an  angel  come  down  from 
Heaven,  having  the  key  of  the  bottomless  pit  and  a  great 
chain  in  his  hand.  And  he  laid  hold  on  the  dragon,  that  old 
serpent,  which  is  the  devil,  and  Satan,  and  bound  him  a 
thousand  years;  and  cast  him  into  the  bottomless  pit,  and 
shut  him  up,  and  set  a  seal  upon  him,  that  he  should  de- 
ceive the  nations  no  more,  till  the  thousand  years  should 
be  fulfilled ;  and  after  that  he  must  be  loosed  a  little  season." a 

That  the  expression,  "  bottomless  pit,"  represents  the  earth 
in  a  state  of  confusion  and  darkness,  is  evident  from  other 
scriptures.  Concerning  the  condition  of  the  earth  "in  the 
beginning,"  the  Bible- record  says  that  it  "was  without  form, 
and  void;  and  darkness  was  upon  llic  inrn  of  iho  deep."1 

3 Gen.  1  :'2;  the  word  here  translated  "deep"  is  the  same  that  ir»  ROT 
20  : 1-3  is  rendered  "  bottomless  pit." 

JLev.  JO  :'_'].  niev.  20:1-3. 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  EARTH.  659 

Prophecy  teaches  that  it  will  be  brought  back,  partially,  at 
least,  to  this  condition.  Looking  forward  to  the  great  day 
of  God,  the  prophet  Jeremiah  declares:  "I  beheld  the  earth, 
and,  lo,  it  was  without  form,  and  void ;  and  the  heavens,  and 
they  had  no  light.  I  beheld  the  mountains,  and,  lo,  they 
trembled,  and  all  the  hills  moved  lightly.  I  beheld,  and, 
lo,  there  was  no  man,  and  all  the  birds  of  the  heavens  were 
fled.  I  beheld,  and,  lo,  the  fruitful  place  was  a  wilderness, 
and  all  the  cities  thereof  were  broken  down."1 

Here  is  to  be  the  home  of  Satan  with  his  evil  angels  for 
a  thousand  years.  Limited  to  the  earth,  he  will  not  have 
access  to  other  worlds,  to  tempt  and  annoy  those  who  have 
never  fallen.  It  is  in  this  sense  that  he  is  bound;  there  are 
none  remaining,  upon  whom  he  can  exercise  his  power. 
He  is  wholly  cut  off  from  the  work  of  deception  and  ruin 
which  for  so  many  centuries  has  been  his  sole  delight. 

The  prophet  Isaiah,  looking  forward  to  the  time  of  Satan's 
overthrow,  exclaims:  "How  art  thou  fallen  from  Heaven, 
O  Lucifer,  son  of  the  morning!  how  art  thou  cast  down  to 
the  ground,  which  didst  weaken  the  nations."  "  Thou  hast 
said  in  thine  heart,  I  will  ascend  into  Heaven,  I  will  exalt 
my  throne  above  the  stars  of  God."  "  I  will  be  like  the  Most 
High.  Yet  thou  shalt  be  brought  down  to  hell,  to  the  sides 
of  the  pit.  They  that  see  thee  shall  narrowly  look  upon 
thee,  and  consider  thee,  saying,  Is  this  the  man  that  made 
the  earth  to  tremble,  that  did  shake  kingdoms;  that  made 
the  world  as  a  wilderness,  and  destroyed  the  cities  thereof; 
that  opened  not  the  house  of  his  prisoners  f  " 2 

For  six  thousand  years,  Satan's  work  of  rebellion  has 
"  made  the  earth  to  tremble."  He  has  "  made  the  world  as 
a  wilderness,  and  destroyed  the  cities  thereof."  And  "he 
opened  not  the  house  of  his  prisoners."  For  six  thousand 
years  his  prison-house  has  received  God's  people,  and  he 
would  have  held  them  captive  forever,  but  Christ  has  broken 
his  bonds,  and  set  the  prisoners  free. 

Even  the  wicked  are  now  placed  beyond  the  power  ol 

1  Jer.  4  : 23-27.  2  Isa.  14  : 12-1J. 


660  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


Satan;  and  alone  with  his  evil  angels  he  remains  to  realize 
the  effect  of  the  curse  which  sin  has  brought.  "  The  kings 
of  the  nations,  even  all  of  them,  lie  in  glory,  every  one  in 
his  own  house  [the  grave].  But  thou  art  cast  out  of  thy 
grave  like  an  abominable  branch.  .  .  .  Thou  shalt  not 
be  joined  with  them  in  burial,  because  thou  hast  destroyed 
thy  land,  and  slain  thy  people."  ! 

For  a  thousand  years,  Satan  will  wander  to  and  fro  in  the 
desolate  earth,  to  behold  the  results  of  his  rebellion  against 
the  law  of  God.  During  this  time  his  sufferings  are  intense. 
Since  his  fall,  his  life  of  unceasing  activity  has  banished  re- 
flection; but  he  is  now  deprived  of  his  power,  and  left  to 
contemplate  the  part  wThich  he  has  acted  since  first  he  re- 
belled against  the  government  of  Heaven,  and  to  look  for- 
ward with  trembling  and  terror  to  the  dreadful  future,  when 
he  must  suffer  for  all  the  evil  that  he  has  done,  and  be  pun- 
ished for  the  sins  that  he  has  caused  to  be  committed. 

To  God's  people,  the  captivity  of  Satan  will  bring  gladness 
and  rejoicing.  Says  the  prophet:  "It  shall  come  to  pass  in 
the  day  that  the  Lord  shall  give  thee  rest  from  thy  sorrow, 
and  from  thy  trouble,  and  from  the  hard  service  wherein  thou 
wast  made  to  serve,  that  thou  shalt  take  up  this  proverb 
against  the  king  of  Babylon  [here  representing  Satan],  and 
say,  How  hath  the  oppressor  ceased !  .  .  .  The  Lord  hath 
broken  the  staff  of  the  wicked,  the  scepter  of  the  rulers;  that 
smote  the  peoples  in  wrath  with  a  continual  stroke,  that 
ruled  the  nations  in  anger,  with  a  persecution  that  none 
restrained." a 

During  the  thousand  years  between  the  first  and  the 
second  resurrection,  the  Judgment  of  the  wicked  takes  place. 
The  apostle  Paul  points  to  this  Judgment  as  an  event  that 
follows  the  second  advent.  "Judge  nothing  before  the  time, 
until  the  Lord  come,  who  both  will  bring  to  light  the  hidden 
things  of  clarkiH'ss.  and  will  make  manifest  the  counsels  of 
the  hearts." 3  Daniel  declares  that  when  the  Ancient  of  days 

1  Jsa.  14  :  18-20,         2  Jsa.  14  :  3-6,  Revised  Version.          3 1  Cor.  4  :  5. 


DESOLATION  OP  THE 


661 


came,  "Judgment  was  given  to  the  saints  of  the  Most  High."  l 
At  this  time  the  righteous  reign  as  kings  and  priests  unto 
God.  John  in  the  Revelation  says:  "I  saw  thrones,  and 
they  sat  upon  them,  and  judgment  was  given  unto  them." 
"  They  shall  be  priests  of  God  and  of  Christ,  and  shall  reign 
with  him  a  thousand  years."  'J  It  is  at  this  time  that,  as 
foretold  by  Paul,  "the  saints  shall  judge  the  world."2  In 
union  with  Christ  they  judge  the  wicked,  comparing  their 
acts  with  the  statute  book,  the  Bible,  and  deciding  every 
case  according  to  the  deeds  done  in  the  body.  Then  the 
portion  which  the  wicked  must  suffer  is  meted  out,  accord- 
ing to  their  works;  and  it  is  recorded  against  their  names 
in  the  book  of  death. 

Satan  also  and  evil  angels  are  judged  by  Christ  and  his 
people.  Says  Paul,  "  Know  ye  not  that  we  shall  judge 
angels?"  And  Jude  declares  that  "  the  angels  which  kept 
not  their  first  estate,  but  left  their  own  habitation,  he  hath 
reserved  in  everlasting  chains  under  darkness  unto  the 
Judgment  of  the  great  day." 3 

At  the  close  of  the  thousand  years  the  second  resurrec- 
tion will  take  place.  Then  the  wicked  will  be  raised  from 
the  dead,  and  appear  before  God  for  the  execution  of  "the 
judgment  written."  Thus  the  Revelator,  after  describing 
the  resurrection  of  the  righteous,  says,  "  The  rest  of  the  dead 
lived  not  again  until  the  thousand  years  were  finished."4 
And  Isaiah  declares,  concerning  the  wicked,  "They  shall  be 
gathered  together,  as  prisoners  are  gathered  in  the  pit,  and 
shall  be  shut  up  in  the  prison,  and  after  many  days  shall  they 
be  visited" * 


1  Dan.  7  :  22.  2Rev.  20  :4,  6;  1  Cor  6  :2,  3. 

*  Rev.  20:5;   Isa.  24:22. 


3  Jude  6. 


CHAPTER    XLII. 


THE    CONTROVERSY    ENDED. 

AT  the  close  of  the  thousand  years,  Christ  again  returns 
to  the  earth.  He  is  accompanied  by  the  host  of  the  re- 
deemed, and  attended  by  a  retinue  of  angels.  As  he  de- 
scends in  terrific  majesty,  he  bids  the  wicked  dead  arise  to 
receive  their  doom.  They  come  forth,  a  mighty  host,  num- 
berless as  the  sands  of  the  sea.  What  a  contrast  to  those 
who  were  raised  at  the  first  resurrection!  The  righteous 
were  clothed  with  immortal  youth  and  beauty.  The  wicked 
bear  the  traces  of  disease  and  death. 

Every  eye  in  that  vast  multitude  is  turned  to  behold  the 
glory  of  the  Son  of  God.  With  one  voice  the  wicked  hosts 
exclaim,  "  Blessed  is  He  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord!"  It  is  not  love  to  Jesus  that  inspires  this  utterance. 
The  force  of  truth  urges  the  words  from  unwilling  lips.  As 
the  wicked  went  into  their  graves,  so  they  come  forth,  with 
the  same  enmity  to  Christ,  and  the  same  spirit  of  rebellion. 
They  are  to  have  no  new  probation,  in  which  to  remedy  the 
defects  of  their  past  lives.  Nothing  would  be  gained  by  this. 
A  life-time  of  transgression  has*  not  softened  their  hearts.  A 
second  probation,  were  it  given  them,  would  be  occupied  as 
was  the  first,  in  evading  the  requirements  of  God  and  ex- 
citing rebellion  against  him. 

Christ  descends  upon  the  Mount -of  Olives,  whence,  aft  or 
his  resurrection,  he  ascended,  and  where  angels  repeated  the 
promise  of  his  return.  Says  the  prophet,  "The  Lord  my 
God  shall  come,  and  all  the  saints  with  thee."  "And  his 
feet  shall  stand  in  that  day  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  which 
is  before  Jerusalem  on  the  east,  and  the  Mount  of  Olives 

(662) 


THE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  663 

shall  cleave  in  the  midst  thereof,  .  .  .  and  there  shall 
be  a  very  great  valley."  "  And  the  Lord  shall  be  king  over 
all  the  earth.  In  that  day  shall  there  be  one  Lord,  and  his 
name  one." 1  As  the  New  Jerusalem,  in  its  dazzling  splen- 
dor, comes  down  out  of  Heaven,  it  rests  upon  the  place  puri- 
fied and  made  ready  to  receive  it,  and  Christ  with  his  people 
and  the  angels,  enters  the  holy  city. 

Now  Satan  prepares  for  a  last  mighty  struggle  for  the 
supremacy.  While  deprived  of  his  power,  and  cut  off  from 
his  work  of  deception,  the  prince  of  evil  was  miserable  and 
dejected;  but  as  the  wicked  dead  are  raised,  and  he  sees  the 
vast  multitudes  upon  his  side,  his  hopes  revive,  and  he 
determines  not  to  yield  the  great  controversy.  He  will 
marshal  all  the  armies  of  the  lost  under  his  banner,  and 
through  them  endeavor  to  execute  his  plans.  The  wicked 
are  Satan's  captives.  In  rejecting  Christ  they  have  accepted 
the  rule  of  the  rebel  leader.  They  are  ready  to  receive  his 
suggestions  and  to  do  his  bidding.  Yet,  true  to  his  early 
cunning,  he  does  not  acknowledge  himself  to  be  Satan.  He 
claims  to  be  the  Prince  who  is  the  rightful  owner  of  the 
world,  and  whose  inheritance  has  been  unlawfully  wrested 
from  him.  He  represents  himself  to  his  deluded  subjects 
as  a  redeemer,  assuring  them  that  his  power  has  brought 
them  forth  from  their  graves,  and  that  he  is  about  to  rescue 
them  from  the  most  cruel  tyranny.  The  presence  of  Christ 
having  been  removed,  Satan  works  wonders  to  support  his 
claims.  He  makes  the  weak  strong,  and  inspires  all  with 
his  own  spirit  and  energy.  He  proposes  to  lead  them 
against  the  camp  of  the  saints,  and  to  take  possession  of 
the  city  of  God.  With  fiendish  exultation  he  points  to  the 
unnumbered  millions  who  have  been  raised  from  the  dead, 
and  declares  that  as  their  leader  he  is  well  able  to  over- 
throw the  city,  and  regain  his  throne  and  his  kingdom. 

In  that  vast  throng  are  multitudes  of  the  long-lived  race 
that  existed  before  the  flood ;  men  of  lofty  stature  and  giant 
intellect,  who,  yielding  to  the  control  of  fallen  angels,  de- 

1  Zech.  14  : 5,  4,  9. 


664  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

voted  all  their  skill  and  knowledge  to  the  exaltation  of 
themselves;  men  whose  wonderful  works  of  art  led  the 
world  to  idolize  their  genius,  but  whose  cruelty  and  evil 
inventions,  defiling  the  earth  and  defacing  the  image  of 
God,  caused  him  to  blot  them  from  the  face  of  his  creation. 
There  are  kings  and  generals  who  conquered  nations,  val- 
iant men  who  never  lost  a  battle,  proud,  ambitious  warriors 
whose  approach  made  kingdoms  tremble.  In  death  these 
experienced  no  change.  As  they  come  up  from  the  grave, 
they  resume  the  current  of  their  thoughts  just  where  it 
ceased.  They  are  actuated  by  the  same  desire  to  conquer 
that  ruled  them  when  they  fell. 

Satan  consults  with  his  angels,  and  then  with  these 
kings  and  conquerors  and  mighty  men.  They  look  upon 
the  strength  and  numbers  on  their  side,  and  declare  that 
the  army  within  the  city  is  small  in  comparison  with  theirs, 
and  that  it  can  be  overcome.  They  lay  their  plans  to  take 
possession  of  the  riches  and  glory  of  the  New  Jerusalem. 
All  immediately  begin  to  prepare  for  battle.  Skillful  arti- 
sans construct  implements  of  war.  Military  leaders,  famed 
for  their  success,  marshal  the  throngs  of  warlike  men  into 
companies  and  divisions. 

At  last  the  order  to  advance  is  given,  and  the  countless 
host  moves  on, — an  army  such  as  was  never  summoned  by 
earthly  conquerors,  such  as  the  combined  forces  of  all  ages 
since  war  began  on  earth  could  never  equal.  Satan,  the 
mightiest  of  warriors,  leads  the  van,  and  his  angels  unite 
their  forces  for  this  final  struggle.  Kings  and  warriors  are 
in  his  train,  and  the  multitudes  follow  in  vast  companies, 
each  under  its  appointed  leader.  With  military  precision, 
the  serried  ranks  advance  over  the  earth's  broken  and  un- 
even surface  to  the  city  of  God.  By  command  of  Jesus,  the 
gates  of  the  New  Jerusalem  are  closed,  and  the  armies  of 
Satan  surround  the  city,  and  make  ready  for  the  onset. 

Now  Christ  again  appears  to  the  view  of  his  enemies. 
Far  above  the  city,  upon  a  foundation  of  burnished  gold,  is 
u  throne,  high  and  lifted  up.  Upon  this  throne  sits  the  Son 


TtiE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  665 


of  God,  and  around  him  are  the  subjects  of  his  kingdom. 
The  power  and  majesty  of  Christ  no  language  can  describe, 
no  pen  portray.  The  glory  of  the  Eternal  Father  is  en- 
shrouding his  Son.  The  brightness  of  his  presence  fills  the 
city  of  God,  and  flows  out  beyond  the  gates,  flooding  the 
whole  earth  with  its  radiance. 

Nearest  the  throne  are  those  who  were  once  zealous  in  the 
cause  of  Satan,  but  who,  phicked  as  brands  from  the  burn- 
ing, have  followed  their  Saviour  writh  deep,  intense  devotion. 
Next  are  those  who  perfected  Christian  characters  in  the 
midst  of  falsehood  and  infidelity,  those  who  honored  the 
law  of  God  wrhen  the  Christian  world  declared*  it  void,  and 
the  millions,  of  all  ages,  who  were  martyred  for  their  faith. 
And  beyond  is  the  "great  multitude,  which  no  man  could 
number,  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people,  and 
tongues,"  "before  the  throne,  and  before  the  Lamb,  clothed 
with  white  robes,  and  palms  in  their  hands." !  Their  war- 
fare is  ended,  their  victory  won.  They  have  run  the  race 
and  reached  the  prize.  The  palm  branch  in  their  hands  is  a 
symbol  of  their  triumph,  the  white  robe  an  emblem  of  the 
spotless  righteousness  of  Christ  which  now  is  theirs. 

The  redeemed  raise  a  song  of  praise  that  echoes  and  re- 
echoes through  the  vaults  of  heaven,  "  Salvation  krour  God 
which  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb."  And 
angel  and  seraph  unite  their  voices  in  adoration.  As  the 
redeemed  have  beheld  the  power  and  malignity  of  Satan, 
they  have  seen,  as  never  before,  that  no  power  but  that  of 
Christ  could  have  made  them  conquerors.  In  all  that  shin- 
ing throng  there  are  none  to  ascribe  salvation  to  themselves, 
as  if  they  had  prevailed  by  their  own  power  and  goodness. 
Nothing  is  said  of  what  they  have  done  or  suffered ;  but  the 
burden  of  every  song,  the  key-note  of  every  anthem,  is,  Sal- 
vation to  our  God,  and  unto  the  Lamb. 

In  the  presence  of  the  assembled  inhabitants  of  earth  and 
Heaven  the  final  coronation  of  the  Son  of  God  takes  place. 
And  now,  invested  with  supreme  majesty  and  power,  the 

.  7:9. 


666  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


King  of  kings  pronounces  sentence  upon  the  rebels  against 
his  government,  and  executes  justice  upon  those  who  have 
transgressed  his  law  and  oppressed  his  people.  Says  the 
prophet  of  God:  "I  saw  a  great  white  throne,  and  Him  that 
sat  on  it,  from  whose  face  the  earth  and  the  heaven  fled 
away;  and  there  was  found  no  place  for  them.  And  I  saw 
the  dead,  small  and  great,  stand  before  God;  and  the  books 
were  opened;  and  another  book  was  opened,  which  is  the 
book  of  life;  and  the  dead  were  judged  out  of  those  things 
which  were  written  in  the  books,  according  to  their  works."1 

As  soon  as  the  books  of  record  are  opened,  and  the  eye  of 
Jesus  looks'upon  the  wicked,  they  are  conscious  of  every  sin 
which  they  have  ever  committed.  They  see  just  where 
their  feet  diverged  from  the  path  of  purity  and  holiness,  just 
how  far  pride  and  rebellion  have  carried  them  in  the  viola- 
tion of  the  law  of  God.  The  seductive  temptations  which 
they  encouraged  by  indulgence  in  sin,  the  blessings  per- 
verted, the  messengers  of  God  despised,  the  warnings  re- 
jected, the  waves  of  mercy  beaten  back  by  the  stubborn, 
unrepentant  heart, — all  appear  as  if  written  in  letters  of  fire. 

Above  the  throne  is  revealed  the  cross;  and  like  a  pano- 
ramic view  appear  the  scenes  of  Adam's  temptation  and 
fall,  and  the  successive  steps  in  the  great  plan  of  redemp- 
tion. The  Saviour's  lowly  birth;  his  early  life  of  simplicity 
and  obedience;  his  baptism  in  Jordan;  the  fast  and  temp- 
tation in  the  wilderness;  his  public  ministry,  unfolding  to 
men  Heaven's  most  precious  blessings;  the  days  crowded 
with  deeds  of  love  and  mercy,  the  nights  of  prayer  and 
watching  in  the  solitude  of  the  mountains;  the  plottings  of 
envy,  hate,  and  malice  which  repaid  his  benefits;  the  awful, 
mysterious  agony  in  Gethsemane,  beneath  the  crushing 
weight  of  the  sins  of  the  whole  world;  his  betrayal  into  the 
hands  of  the  murderous  mob;  the  fearful  events  of  that 
night  of  horror, — the  unresisting  prisoner,  forsaken  by  his 
best-loved  disciples,  rudely  hurried  through  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem;  the  Son  of  God  exultingly  displayed  before 

^ev.  20:11,  12. 


OONTRO  VERSY  ENDED. 


667 


Annas,  arraigned  in  the  liigh  priest's  palace,  in  the  judg- 
ment hall  of  Pilate,  before  the  cowardly  and  cruel  Herod, 
mocked,  insulted,  tortured,  and  condemned  to  die, — all  are 
vividly  portrayed. 

And  now  before  the  swaying  multitude  are  revealed  the 
final  scenes, — the  patient  Sufferer  treading  the  path  to  Cal- 
vary; the  Prince  of  Heaven  hanging  upon  the  cross;  the 
haughty  priests  and  the  jeering  rabble  deriding  his  expiring 
agony;  the  supernatural  darkness;  the  heaving  earth,  the 
rent  rocks,  the  open  graves,  marking  the  moment  when  the 
world's  Redeemer  yielded  up  his  life. 

The  awful  spectacle  appears  just  as  it  was.  Satan,  his 
angels,  and  his  subjects  have  no  power  to  turn  from  the 
picture  of  their  own  work,  Each  actor  recalls  the  part 
which  he  performed.  Herod,  who  slew  the  innocent  chil- 
dren of  Bethlehem  that  he  might  destroy  the  King  of  Israel; 
the  base  Herodias,  upon  whose  guilty  soul  rests  the  blood  of 
John  the  Baptist ;  the  weak,  time-serving  Pilate ;  the  mock- 
ing soldiers;  the  priests  and  rulers  and  the  maddened  throng 
who  cried,  "His  blood  be  on  us,  and  our  children!" — all 
behold  the  enormity  of  their  guilt.  They  vainly  seek  to 
hide  from  the  divine  majesty  of  His  countenance,  outshining 
the  glory  of  the  sun,  while  the  redeemed  cast  their  crowns 
at  the  Saviour's  feet,  exclaiming,  "He  died  for  me!" 

Amid  the  ransomed  throng  are  the  apostles  of  Christ,  the 
heroic  Paul,  the  ardent  Peter,  the  loved  and  loving  John, 
and  their  true-hearted  brethren,  and  with  them  the  vast 
host  of  martyrs;  while  outside  the  walls,  with  every  vile 
and  abominable  thing,  are  those  by  whom  they  were  per- 
secuted, imprisoned,  and  slain.  There  is  Nero,  that  monster 
of  cruelty  and  vice,  beholding  the  joy  and  exaltation  of  those 
whom  he  once  tortured,  and  in  whose  extremest  anguish  he 
found  Satanic  delight.  His  mother  is  there  to  witness  the 
result  of  her  own  work ;  to  see  how  the  evil  stamp  of  char- 
acter transmitted  to  her  son,  the  passions  encouraged  and 
developed  by  her  influence  and  example,  have  borne  fruit 
in  crimes  that  caused  the  world  to  shudder. 


668  THE  GREAT 


There  are  papist  priests  and  prelates,  who  claimed  to  be 
Christ's  ambassadors,  yet  employed  the  rack,  the  dungeon, 
and  the  stake  to  control  the  consciences  of  his  people.  There 
are  the  proud  pontiffs  who  exalted  themselves  above  God, 
and  presumed  to  change  the  law  of  the  Most  High.  Those 
pretended  fathers  of  the  church  have  an  account  to  render 
to  God  from  which  they  would  fain  be  excused.  Too  late 
they  are  made  to  see  that  the  Omniscient  One  is  jealous  of 
his  law,  arid  that  he  will  in  nowise  clear  the  guilty.  They 
learn  now  that  Christ  identifies  his  interest  with  that  of  his 
suffering  people;  and  they  feel  the  force  of  his  own  words, 
"  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these 
my  brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me." l 

The  whole  wicked  world  stand  arraigned  at  the  bar  of 
God,  on  the  charge  of  high  treason  against  the  government 
of  Heaven.  They  have  none  to  plead  their  cause;  they  are 
without  excuse;  and  the  'sentence  of  eternal  death  is  pro- 
nounced against  them. 

It  is  now  evident  to  all  that  the  wages  of  sin  is  not  noble 
independence  and  eternal  life,  but  slavery,  ruin,  and  death. 
The  wicked  see  what  they  have  forfeited  by  their  life  of 
rebellion.  The  far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of 
glory  was  despised  when  offered  them;  but  how  desirable 
it  now  appears.  "All  this,"  cries  the  lost  soul,  "I  might 
have  had;  but  I  chose  to  put  these  things  far  from  me. 
Oh,  strange  infatuation!  I  have  exchanged  peace,  happi- 
ness, and  honor,  for  wretchedness,  infamy,  and  despair.'1 
All  see  that  their  exclusion  from  Heaven  is  just.  By  their 
lives  they  have  declared,  "We  will  not  have  this  Jesus  to 
reign  over  us." 

As  if  entranced,  the  wicked  have  looked  upon  the  coro- 
nation of  the  Son  of  God.  They  see  in  his  hands  the  tables 
of  the  divine  law,  the  statutes  which  they  have  despised  and 
transgressed.  They  witness  the  outburst  of  wonder,  rapture, 
and  adoration  from  the  saved;  and  as  the  wave  of  melody 
sweeps  over  the  multitudes  without  the  city,  all  with  one 

1  Matt.  25  : 40. 


THE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  669 

voice  exclaim,  "Great  and  marvelous  are  thy  works,  Lord 
God  Almighty;  just  and  true  are  thy  ways,  thou  King  of 
saints; "  and  falling  prostrate,  they  worship  the  Prince  of  life. 

Satan  seems  paralyzed  as  he  beholds  the  glory  and  majesty 
of  Christ.  He  who  was  once  a  covering  cherub  remembers 
whence  he  has  fallen.  A  shining  seraph,  "son  of  the  morn- 
ing;'7 how  changed,  how  degraded!  From  the  council 
where  once  he  was  honored,  he  is  forever  excluded.  He  sees 
another  now  standing  near  to  the  Father,  veiling  his  glory. 
He  has  seen  the  crown  placed  upon  the  head  of  Christ  by  an 
angel  of  lofty  stature  and  majestic  presence,  and  he  knows 
that  the  exalted  position  of  this  angel  might  have  been  his. 

Memory  recalls  the  home  of  his  innocence  and  purity, 
the  peace  and  content  that  were  his  until  he  indulged  in 
murmuring  against  God,  and  envy  of  Christ.  His  accu- 
sations, his  rebellion,  his  deceptions  to  gain  the  sympathy 
and  support  of  the  angels,  his  stubborn  persistence  in  mak- 
ing no  effort  for  self-recovery  when  God  would  have  granted 
him  forgiveness, — all  come  vividly  before  him.  He  reviews 
liis  work  among  men  and  its  results, — the  enmity  of  man 
toward  his  fellow-man,  the  terrible  destruction  of  life,  the 
rise  and  fall  of  kingdoms,  the  overturning  of  thrones,  the 
long  succession  of  tumults,  conflicts,  and  revolutions.  He 
recalls  his  constant  efforts  to  oppose  the  work  of  Christ  and 
to  sink  man  lower  and  lower.  He  sees  that  his  hellish  plots 
have  been  powerless  to  destroy  those  who  have  put  their 
trust  in  Jesus.  As  Satan  looks  upon  his  kingdom,  the  fruit 
of  his  toil,  he  sees  only  failure  -and  ruin.  He  has  led  the 
.multitudes  to  believe  that  the  city  of  God  would  be  an  easy 
prey ;  but  he  knows  that  this  is  false.  Again  and  again,  in 
the  progress  of  the  great  controversy,  he  has  been  defeated, 
and  compelled  to  yield.  He  knows  too  well  the  power  and 
majesty  of  the  Eternal. 

.The  aim  of  the  great  rebel  has  ever  been  to  justify  him- 
self, and  to  prove  the  divine  government  responsible  for  the 
rebellion.  To  this  end  he  has  bent  all  the  power  of  his 

i  flev,  15  :  3. 


670  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

giant  intellect.  He  has  worked  deliberately  and  systemat- 
ically, and  with  marvelous  success,  leading  vast  multitudes 
to  accept  his  version  of  the  great  controversy  which  has 
been  so  long  in  progress.  For  thousands  of  years  this  chief 
of  conspiracy  has  palmed  off  falsehood  for  truth.  But  the 
time  has  now  come  when  the  rebellion  is  to  be  finally  de- 
feated, and  the  history  and  character  of  Satan  disclosed. 
In  his  last  great  effort  to  dethrone  Christ,  destroy  his  people, 
and  take  possession  of  the  city  of  God,  the  arch-deceiver  lias 
been  fully  unmasked.  Those  who  have  united  with  him 
see  the  total  failure  of  his  cause.  Christ's  followers  and  the 
loyal  angels  behold  the  full  extent  of  his  machinations 
against  the  government  of  God.  He  is  the  object  of  uni- 
versal abhorrence. 

Satan  sees  that  his  voluntary  rebellion  has  unfitted  him 
for  Heaven.  He  has  trained  his  powers  to  war  against  God; 
the  purity,  peace,  and  harmony  of  Heaven  would  be  to  him 
supreme  torture.  His  accusations  against  the  mercy  and 
justice  of  God  are  now  silenced.  The  reproach  which  lie 
lias  endeavored  to  cast  upon  Jehovah  rests  wholly  upon 
himself.  And  now  Satan  bows  down,  and  confesses  the 
justice  of  his  sentence. 

"Who  shall  not  fear  tliee,  0  Lord,  and  glorify  thy  name? 
for  thou  only  art  holy:  for  all  nation.-:  shall  come  ami  wor- 
ship before  thee;  for  thy  judgments  are  made  manifest."1 
Every  question  of  truth  and  error  in  the  long-standing  con- 
troversy has  now  been  made  plain.  The  results  of  rebellion, 
the  fruits  of  setting  aside  the  divine  statutes,  hav<-  been  laid 
open  to  the  view  of  all  created  intelligences.  The  working 
out  of  Satan's  rule  in  contrast  with  the  government  of  God, 
has  been  presented  to  the  whole  universe.  Satan's  own 
works  have  condemned  him.  God's  wisdom,  his  justice, 
and  his  goodness  stand  fully  vindicated.  It  is  seen  that 
all  his  dealings  in  the  great  controversy  have  been  con- 
ducted with  respect  t<»  the  eternal  good  of  his  people,  and 
the  good  of  all  the  worlds  that  he  has  m-ated.  "All  thy 

'Rev.  15:4. 


THE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  671 

works  shall  praise  thee,  0  Lord ;  and  thy  saints  shall  bless 
thee."1  The  history  of  sin  will  stand  to  all  eternity  as  a 
witness  that  with  the  existence  of  God's  law  is  bound  up  the 
happiness  of  all  the  beings  he  has  created.  With  all  the 
facts  of  the  great  controversy  in  view,  the  whole  universe, 
both  loyal  and  rebellious,  with  one  accord  declare,  "Just  and 
true  are  thy  ways,  thou  King  of  saints." 

Before  the  universe  has  been  clearly  presented  the  great 
sacrifice  made  by  the  Father  and  the  Son  in  man's  behalf. 
The  hour  has  come  when  Christ  occupies  his  rightful  posi- 
tion, and  is  glorified  above  principalities  and  powers  and 
every  name  that  is  named.  It  was  for  the  joy  that  was  set 
before  him, — that  he  might  bring  many  sons  unto  glory, — 
that  he  endured  the  cross  and  despised  the  shame.  And 
inconceivably  great  as  was  the  sorrow  and  the  shame,  yet 
greater  is  the  joy  and  the  glory.  He  looks  upon  the  re- 
deemed, renewed  in  his  own  image,  every  heart  bearing  the 
perfect  impress  of  the  divine,  every  face  reflecting  the  like- 
ness of  their  King.  He  beholds  in  them  the  result  of  the 
travail  of  his  soul,  and  he  is  satisfied.  Then,  in  a  voice  that 
reaches  the  assembled  multitudes  of  the  righteous  and  the 
wicked,  he  declares,  "Behold  the  purchase  of  my  blood! 
For  these  I  suffered;  for  these  I  died;  that  they  might  dwell 
in  my  presence  throughout  eternal  ages."  And  the  song  of 
praise  ascends  from  the  white-robed  ones  about  the  throne, 
"Worthy  is  the  Lamb  that  was  slain  to  receive  power,  and 
riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength,  and  honor,  and  glory,  and 
blessing."2 

Notwithstanding  that  Satan  has  been  constrained  to  uc- 
Knowledge  God's  justice,  and  to  bow  to  the  supremacy  of 
Christ,  his  character  remains  unchanged.  The  spirit  of  re- 
bellion, like  a  in  ighty  torrent,  again  bursts  forth.  Filled  with 
frenzy,  he  determines  not  to  yield  the  great  controversy. 
The  time  has  come  for  a  last  desperate  struggle  against  the 
King  of  Heaven  He  rushes  into  the  midst  of  his  subjects, 
T,n<?  andeavors  tc  inspire  them  with  his  o\vn  fury,  and  arouse 
•  Jfs,  145  ;!<>,  -Rcvc5:12, 


672  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


them  to  instant  battle.  But  of  all  the  countless  millions 
whom  he  has  allured  into  rebellion,  there  are  none  now  to 
acknowledge  his  supremacy.  His  power  is  at  an  end.  The 
wicked  are  filled  with  the  same  hatred  of  God  that  inspires 
Satan;  but  they  see  that  their  case  is  hopeless,  that  they 
cannot  prevail  against  Jehovah.  Their  rage  is  kindled 
against  Satan  and  those  who  have  been  his  agents  in  decep- 
tion, and  with  the  fury  of  demons  they  turn  upon  them. 

Saith  the  Lord:  "Because  thou  hast  set  thine  heart  as  the 
heart  of  God;  behold,  therefore  I  will  bring  strangers  upon 
thee,  the  terrible  of  the  nations ;  and  they  shall  draw  their 
swords  against  the  beauty  of  thy  wisdom,  and  they  shall 
defile  thy  brightness.  They  shall  bring  thee  down  to  the 
pit."  "I  will  destroy  thee,  0  covering  cherub,  from  the 
midst  of  the  stones  of  fire.  ...  I  will  cast  thee  to  the 
ground.  I  will  lay  thee  before  kings,  that  they  may  behold 
thee."  "I  will  bring  thee  to  ashes  upon  the  earth  in  the- 
sight  of  all  them  that  behold  thee.  .  .  .  Thou  shalt  be 
a  terror,  and  never  shalt  thou  be  any  more." 1 

"  Every  battle  of  the  warrior  is  with  confused  noise,  and 
garments  rolled  in  blood;  but  this  shall  be  with  burning 
and  fuel  of  fire."  "The  indignation  of  the  Lord  is  upon 
all  nations,  and  his  fury  upon  all  their  armies:  he  hath 
utterly  destroyed  them,  he  hath  delivered  them  to  the 
slaughter."  "Upon  the  wicked  he  shall  rain  quick  burning 
coals,  fire  and  brimstone,  and  a  horrible  tempest:  this  shall 
be  the  portion  of  their  cup." a  Fire  comes  down  from  God 
out  of  Heaven.  The  earth  is  broken  up.  The  weapons  con- 
cealed in  its  depths  are  drawn  forth.  Devouring  flames 
burst  from  every  yawning  chasm.  The  very  rocks  are  <>n 
fire.  The  day  has  come  that  shall  burn  as  an  oven.  The 
elements  melt  with  fervent  heat,  the  earth  also,  and  the 
works  that  are  therein  are  burned  up.3  The  earth's  surface 
sooms  one  molten  mass. — a  vast,  soothing  lake  of  tiro.  It  is 
the  time  of  the  judgment  and  pordition  of  ungodly  men,— 

1  Eze.  28  : 6-8,  16-19.  a  laa.  9  : 5;  34  : 2;  Ps.  11:6  (margin). 

8  Mai.  4:1;  2  Pet.  3:10. 


THE  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  673 

"  the  day  of  the  Lord's  vengeance,  and  the  year  of  recom- 
penses for  the  controversy  of  Zion."  ] 

The  wicked  receive  their  recompense  in  the  earth.1  They 
"  shall  be  stubble;  and  the  day  that  cometh  shall  burn  them 
up,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts." 2  Some  are  destroyed  as  in  a 
moment,  while  others  suffer  many  days.  All  are  punished 
"  according  to  their  deeds."  The  sins  of  the  righteous  hav- 
ing been  transferred  to  Satan,  he  is  made  to  suffer  not  only 
for  his  own  rebellion,  but  for  all  the  sins  which  he  has  caused 
God's  people  to  commit.  His  punishment  is  to  be  far  greater 
than  that  of  those  whom  he  has  deceived.  After  all  have 
perished  who  fell  by  his  deceptions,  he  is  still  to  live  and 
suffer  on.  In  the  cleansing  flames  the  wicked  are  at  last 
destroyed,  root  and  branch, — Satan  the  root,  his  followers  the 
branches.  The  full  penalty  of  the  law  has  been  visited;  the 
demands  of  justice  have  been  met;  and  Heaven  and  earth, 
beholding,  declare  the  righteousness  of  Jehovah. 

Satan's  work  of  ruin  is  forever  ended.  For  six  thousand 
years  he  has  wrought  his  will,  filling  the.  earth  with  woe, 
and  causing  grief  throughout  the  universe.  The  whole 
creation  has  groaned  and  travailed  together  in  pain.  Now 
God's  creatures  are  forever  delivered  from  his  presence  and 
temptations.  "  The  whole  earth  is  at  rest,  and  is  quiet;  they 
[the  righteous]  break  forth  into  singing."3  And  a  shout 
of  praise  and  triumph  ascends  from  the  whole  loyal  uni- 
verse. "  The  voice  of  a  great  multitude,"  "  as  the  voice  of 
many  waters,  and  as  the  voice  of  mighty  thunderings,"  is 
heard,  saying,  "Alleluia;  for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent 
reigneth." 

While  the  earth  was  wrapped  in  the  fire  of  destruction, 
the.  righteous  abode  safely  in  the  holy  city.  Upon  those 
that  had  part  in  the  first  resurrection,  the  second  death  has 
no  power.4  While  God  is  to  the  wicked  a  consuming  fire, 
he  is  to  his  people  both  a  sun  and  a  shield.4 

"And  I  saw  a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth;  for  the  first 

lisa.  34:8;  Prov.  11:31.  *  Mai.  4:1.  3Isa.U:7. 

*  Rev.  20:6;  Ps.  84:11. 
48 


674  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

heaven  and  the  first  earth  were  passed  away."1  The  lire 
that  consumes  the  wicked  purifies  the  earth.  Every  trace 
of  the  curse  is  swept  away.  No  eternally  burning  hell  will 
keep  before  the  ransomed  the  fearful  consequences  of  sin. 

One  reminder  alone  remains  :  our  Redeemer  will  ever  bear 
the  marks  of  his  crucifixion.  Upon  his  wounded  head,  upon 
his  side,  his  hands  and  feet,  are  the  only  traces  of  the  cruel 
work  that  sin  has  wrought.  Says  the  prophet,  beholding 
Christ  in  his  glory,  "  He  had  bright  beams  coming  out  of  his 
side  ;  and  there  was  the  hiding  of  his  power."  2  That  pierced 
side  wrhence  flowed  the  crimson  stream  that  reconciled  man 
to  God,  —  there  is  the  Saviour's  glory,  there  "the  hiding  of 
his  power."  "  Mighty  to  save,"  through  the  sacrifice  of  re- 
demption, he  was  therefore  strong  to  execute  justice  upon 
them  that  despised  God's  mercy.  And  the  tokens  of  his 
humiliation  are  his  highest  honor;  through  the  eternal  ajjvs 
the  wounds  of  Calvary  will  show  forth  his  praise,  and  de- 
clare his  power. 

"  0  Tower  of  the  flock,  the  stronghold  of  the  daughter  of 
Zion,  unto  thee  shall  it  come,  even  the  first  dominion."  3  The 
time  has  come,  to  which  holy  men  have  looked  with  long- 
ing since  the  flaming  sword  barred  the  first  pair  from  Eden, 
—  the  time  for  "the  redemption  of  the  purchased  possession."3 
The  earth  originally  given  to  man  as  his  kingdom,  betrayed 
by  him  into  the  hands  of  Satan,  and  so  long  held  by  the 
mighty  foe,  has  been  brought  back  by  the  great  plan  of 
redemption.  All  that  was  lost  by  sin  lias  been  restored. 
"Thus  saith  the  Lord  .  .  .  that  formed  the  earth  and 
made  it;  he  hath  established  it,  he  created  it  not  in  vain,  he 
formed  it  to  be  inhabited."  *  God's  original  purpose  in  the 
creation  of  the  earth  is  fulfilled  as  it  is  made  the  eternal 
abode  of  the  redeemed.  "The  righteous  shall  inherit  the 
land,  and  dwell  therein  forever."  fi 

A  fear  of  making  the  future  inheritance  seem  too  material 
has  led  many  to  spiritualize  away  the  very  trull  is  which  k-a<l 


.  21:1.          3Hab.  3  :  4  (margin).  3  Micah  4:8;  Kph.  1  :  14. 

4  Isa.  45  :  18.          6  Ps.  37  :  29. 


THE  CONTR  0  VERS  Y  ENDED.  675 


us  to  look  upon  it  as  our  home.  Christ  assured  his  disciples 
that  he  went  to  prepare  mansions  for  them  in  the  Father's 
house.  Those  who  accept  the  teachings  of  God's  Word  will 
not  be  wholly  ignorant  concerning  the  heavenly  abode. 
And  yet,  "eye  hath  not  seen,  nor  ear  heard,  neither  have 
entered  into  the  heart  of  man,  the  things  which  God  hath 
prepared  for  them  that  love  him."1  Human  language  is 
inadequate  to  describe  the  reward  of  the  righteous.  It  will 
be  known  only  to  those  who  behold  it.  No  finite  mind  can 
comprehend  the  glory  of  the  Paradise  of  God. 

In  the  Bible  the  inheritance  of  the  saved  is  called  a  coun- 
try.2 There  the  heavenly  Shepherd  leads  his  flock  to 
fountains  of  living  waters.  The  tree  of  life  yields  its  fruit 
every  month,  and  the  leaves  of  the  tree  are  for  the  service 
of  the  nations.  There  are  ever-flowing  streams,  clear  as 
crystal,  and  beside  them  waving  trees  cast  their  shadows 
upon  the  paths  prepared  for  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord. 
There  the  widespreading  plains  swell  into  hills  of  beauty, 
and  the  mountains  of  God  rear  their  lofty  summits.  On 
those  peaceful  plains,  beside  those  living  streams,  God's 
people,  so  long  pilgrims  and  wanderers,  shall  find  a  home. 

"My  people  shall  dwell  in  a  peaceable  habitation,  and 
in  sure  dwellings,  and  in  quiet  resting-places."  "Violence 
shall  no  more  be  heard  in  thy  land,  wasting  nor  destruction 
within  thy  borders;  but  thou  shalt  call  thy  walls  Salvation, 
and  thy  gates  Praise."  "  They  shall  build  houses,  and  in- 
habit them;  and  they  shall  plant  vineyards,  and  eat  the 
fruit  of  them.  They  shall  not  build,  and  another  inhabit; 
they  shall  not  plant,  and  another  eat:  .  .  .  mine  elect 
shall  long  enjoy  the  work  of  their  hands." 3 

There,  "the  wilderness  and  the  solitary  place  shall  be 
glad  for  them;  and  the  desert  shall  rejoice,  and  blossom  as 
the  rose."  "Instead  of  the  thorn  shall  come  up  the  fir-tree, 
and  instead  of  the  brier  shall  come  up  the  myrtle  tree."  * 
"The  wolf  also  shall  dwell  with  the  lamb,  and  the  leopard 

1 1  Cor.  2:9.        2  Heb.  11  : 14-16.        3  Isa.  32  : 18;  60  : 18;  65  : 21,  22. 
*Isa.  35:1;  55:13. 


676  THE   GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 


shall  lie  down  with  the  kid;  .  .  .  and  a  little  child  shall 
lead  them."  "  They  shall  not  hurt  nor  destroy  in  all  my 
holy  mountain,"1  saith  the  Lord. 

Pain  cannot  exist  in  the  atmosphere  of  Heaven.  There 
will  be  no  more  tears,  no  funeral  trains,  no  badges  of  mourn- 
ing. "There  shall  be  no  more  death,  neither  sorrow,  nor 
crying,  .  .  .  for  the  former  things  are  passed  away."" 
"The  inhabitant  shall  not  say,  I  am  sick;  the  people  that 
dwell  therein  shall  be  forgiven  their  iniquity."  1 

There  is  the  New  Jerusalem,  the  metropolis  of  the  glorified 
new  earth,  "  a  crown  of  glory  in  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  and 
a  royal  diadem  in  the  hand  of  thy  God."1  "  Her  light  was  like 
unto  a  stone  most  precious,  even  like  a  jasper  stone,  clear 
as  crystal."  "  The  nations  of  them  which  are  saved  shall 
walk  in  the  light  of  it;  and  the  kings  of  the  earth  do  bring 
their  glory  and  honor  into  it."2  Saith  the  Lord,  "I  will 
rejoice  in  Jerusalem,  and  joy  in  my  people."1  "The  tab- 
ernacle of  God  is  with  men,  and  he  will  dwell  with  them, 
and  they  shall  be  his  people,  and  God  himself  shall  be  with 
them,  and  be  their  God."' 

In  the  city  of  God  "there  shall  be  no  night."  None  will 
need  Or  desire  repose.  There  will  be  no  weariness  in  doing 
the  will  of  God  and  offering  praise  to  his  name.  We  shall 
ever  feel  the  freshness  of  the  morning,  and  shall  ever  be  far 
from  its  close.  "And  they  need  no  candle,  neither  light  of 
the  sun;  for  the  Lord  God  giveth  them  light."3  The  light 
of  the  sun  will  be  superseded  by  a  radiance  which  is  not 
painfully  dazzling,  yet  which  immeasurably  surpasses  the 
brightness  of  our  noontide.  The  glory  of  God  and  the  Lomb 
floods  the  holy  city  with  unfeiding  light.  The  redeemed 
walk  in  the  sunless  glory  of  perpetual  day. 

"I  saw  ho  temple  therein;  for  the  Lord  God  Almighty 
and  the  Lamb  are  the  temple  of  it."3  The  people  of  God 
are  privileged  to  hold  open  communion  with  the  Father  and 
the  Son.  Now  we  "see  through  a  glass,  darkly."4  We  be- 


11  :6,  9;  33:24;  62:3;  65:19.  *l!ev.  21  :4,  11,24,  3. 

8  Rev.  22:5;  21:22.  *1  Cor.  13:12. 


THE  DOMINION  RESTORED. 


T1IK  CONTROVERSY  ENDED.  677 


hold  the  image  of  God  reflected,  as  in  a  mirror,  in  the  works 
of  nature  and  in  his  dealings  with  men;  but  then  we  shall 
see  him  face  to  face,  without  a  dimming  veil  between.  "We 
shall  stand  in  his  presence,  and  behold  the  glory  of  his 
countenance. 

There  the  redeemed  shall  "know,  even  as  also  they  are 
known."  The  loves  and  sympathies  which  God  himself  has 
planted  in  the  soul,  shall  there  find  truest  and  sweetest  ex- 
ercise. The  pure  communion  with  holy  beings,  the  har- 
monious social  life  with  the  blessed  angels  and  with  the 
faithful  ones  of  all  ages,  who  have  washed  their  robes  and 
made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Larnb,  the  sacred  ties 
that  bind  together  "  the  whole  family  in  Heaven  and  earth,'n 
—these  help  to  constitute  the  happiness  of  the  redeemed. 

There,  immortal  minds  will  contemplate  with  never-failing 
delight  the  wonders  of  creative  power-,  the  mysteries  of  re- 
deeming love.  There  is  no  cruel,  deceiving  foe  to  tempt  to 
forgetfulness  of  God.  Every  faculty  will  be  developed,  every 
capacity  increased.  The  acquirement  of  knowledge  will  not 
weary  the  mind  or  exhaust  the  energies.  There  the  grandest 
enterprises  may  be  carried  forward,  the  loftiest  aspirations 
reached,  the  highest  ambitions  realized;  and  still  there  will 
arise  new  heights  to  surmount,  new  wonders  to  admire,  new 
truths  to  comprehend,  fresh  objects  to  call  forth  the  powers 
of  mind  and  soul  and  body. 

All  the  treasures  of  the  universe  will  be  open  to  the  study 
of  God's  redeemed.  Unfettered  by  mortality,  they  wing  their 
tireless  flight  to  worlds  afar,— worlds  that  thrilled  with  sorrow 
at  the  spectacle  of,  human  woe,  and  rang  with  songs  of  glad- 
ness at  the  tidings  of  a  ransomed  soul.  With  unutterable 
delight  the  children  of  earth  enter  into  the  joy  and  the 
wisdom  of  un fallen  beings.  .They  share  the  treasures  of 
knowledge  and  understanding  gained  through  ages  upon 
ages  in  contemplation  of  God's  handiwork.  With  un- 
dimmed  vision  they  gaze  upon  the  glory  of  creation, — suns 
and  stars  and  systems,  all  in  their  appointed  order  circling 

lEph.  3:15. 


678  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY. 

the  throne  of  Deity.  Upon  all  things,  from  the  least  to  the 
greatest,  the  Creator's  name  is  written,  and  in  all  are  the 
riches  of  his  power  displayed. 

And  the  years  of  eternity,  as  they  roll,  will  bring  richer 
and  still  more  glorious  revelations  of  God  and  of  Christ.  As 
knowledge  is  progressive,  so  will  love,  reverence,  and  hap- 
piness increase.  The  more  men  learn  of  God,  the  greater 
will  be  their  admiration  of  his  character.  As  Jesus  opens 
before  them  the  riches  of  redemption,  and  the  amazing 
achievements  in  the  great  controversy  with  Satan,  the  hearts 
of  the  ransomed  thrill  with  more  fervent  devotion,  and  with 
more  rapturous  joy  they  sweep  the  harps  of  gold;  and  ten 
thousand  times  ten  thousand  and  thousands  of  thousands  of 
voices  unite  to  swell  the  mighty  chorus  of  praise. 

"And  every  creature  which  is  in  Heaven,  and  on  the 
earth,  and  under  the  earth,  and  such  as  are  in  the  sea,  and 
all  that  are  in  them,  heard  I  saying,  Blessing,  and  honor, 
and  glory,  and  power,  be  unto  Him  that  sitteth  upon  the 
throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb  forever  and  ever." ' 

The  great  controversy  is  ended.  Sin  and  sinners  are  no 
more.  The  entire  universe  is  clean.  One  pulse  of  harmony 
and  gladness  beats  through  the  vast  creation.  From  Him 
who  created  all,  flow  life  and  light  and  gladness,  through- 
out the  realms  of  illimitable  space.  From  the  minutest 
atom  to  the  greatest  world,,  all  things,  animate  and  inani- 
mate, in  their  unshadowed  beauty  and  perfect  joy,  declare 
that  God  is  Love. 

1  Rev.  5: 13. 


APPENDIX. 


GENERAL    NOTES. 

NOTE  i.  PAGE  53. — Constantino's  Sunday  law,  issued  A.  D.  321,  was  as 
follows: — 

"Let  all  the  judges  and  town  people,  and  the  occupation  of  all  trades 
rest  on  the  venerable  day  of  the  sun;  but  let  those  who  are  situated  in  the 
country,  freely  and  at  full  liberty  attend  to  the  business  of  agriculture;  be- 
cause it  often  happens  that  no  other  day  is  so  fit  for  sowing  corn  and  planting 
vines;  lest,  the  critical  moment  being  let  slip,  men  should  lose  the  commod- 
ities granted  by  Heaven." 

Of  this  law,  so  high  an  authority  as  the  "Encyclopedia  Brittannica" 
plainly  says:  "  It  was  Coustantine  the  Great  who  first  made  a  law  for  the 
proper  observance  of  Sunday;  and  who,  according  to  Eussbius,  appointed, 
that  it  should  be  regularly  celebrated  throughout  the  Roman  Empire.  Before 
him,  and  even  in  his  time,  they  observed  the  Jewish  Sabbath,  as  well  as 
Sunday."  As  to  the  degree  of  reverence  with  which  Sunday  was  regarded, 
and  the  manner  of  its  observance,  Mosheim  says  that  in  consequence  of  the 
law  enacted  by  Constantine,  the  first  day  of  the  week  was  "  observed  ivith  greater 
solemnity  than  it  had  formerly  been."  l  Yet  Constantine  permitted  all  kinds  of 
agricultural  labor  to  be  performed  on  Sunday!  Bishop  Taylor  declares  that 
"the  primitive  Christians  did  all  manner  of  works  upon  the  Lord's  day."'2 
The  same  statement  is  made  by  Morer:  "The  day  [Sunday]  was  not  wholly 
kept  in  abstaining  from  common  business;  nor  did  they  [Christians]  any 
longer  rest  from  their  ordinary  affairs  (such  was  the  necessity  of  those  times) 
than  during  the  divine  service."3  Says  Cox:  "There  is  110  evidence  that 
either  at  this  [the  time  of  Cunstantine],  or  at  a  period  much  later,  the  ob- 
servance was  viewed  as  deriving  any  obligation  from  the  fourth  command- 
ment; it  seems  to  have  been  regarded  as  an  institution  corresponding  in 
nature  with  Christmas,  Good  Friday,  and  other  festivals  of  the  church  "  4 

NOTE  2.  PAGE  54.— In  the  twelfth  chapter  of  Revelation  we  have  ar, 
a  symbol  a  great  red  dragon.  In  the  ninth  verse  of  that  chapter  this  symbol 
is  explained  as  follows:  "  And  the  great  dragon  was  cast  out,  that  old  serpent, 
called  the  devil,  and  Satan,  which  deceiveth  the  whole  world;  he  was  cast 
out  into  the  earth,  and  his  angels  were  cast  out  with  him."  Undoubtedly 
the  dragon  primarily  represents  Satan.  But  Satan  does  not  appear  upon  the 

1  Eccl.  Hist. ,  cent.  4,  part  2,  chap.  4,  sec.  5. 

2  Duct.  Dubitant.,  part  1,  book  2,  chap.  2,  rule  6,  sec.  59. 

3  Dialogues  on  the  Lord's  Day,  p.  233. 

4  Cox's  Sabbath  Laws,  p.  281. 

(679) 


680  APPK\I>1X. 


earth  in  person;  he  works  through  agents.  It  was  in  the  person  of  wicked 
men  that  he  sought  to  destroy  Jesus  as  soon  as  he  was  born.  Wherever  Satan 
has  been  able  to  control  a  government  so  fully  that  it  would  carry  out  his 
designs,  that  nation  became,  for  the  time,  Satan's  representative.  This  was 
the  case  with  all  the  great  heathen  nations.  For  instance,  see  Ezekiel  28, 
where  Satan  is  represented  as  actual  king  of  Tyre.  This  was  because  he 
fully  controlled  that  government.  In  the  first  centuries  of  the  Christian  era, 
Rome,  of  all  the  pagan  nations,  was  Satan's  chief  agent  in  opposing  the  gospel, 
and  was  therefore  represented  by  the  dragon. 

But  there  came  a  time  when  paganism  in  the  Roman  Empire  fell  before 
the  advancing  fonn  of  Christianity.  Then,  as  is  stated  on  page  54,  "  Paganism 
had  given  place  to  the  p  ipacy.  The  dragon  had  given  to  the  beast  '  his  power, 
and  his  seat,  and  great  authority.'"  That  is,  Satan  then  began  to  work 
through  the  papacy,  just  as  he  had  formerly  worked  through  paganism.  But 
the  papacy  is  not  represented  by  the  dragon,  because  it  is  necessary  to  in- 
troduce another  symbol  in  order  to  show  the  change  in  the  form  of  the  oppo- 
sition to  God.  Previous  to  the  rise  of  the  papacy,  all  opposition  to  the  law 
of  God  had  been  in  the  form  of  paganism, — God  had  been  openly  defied;  but 
from  that  time  the  opposition  was  carried  on  under  the  guise  of  professed 
allegiance  to  him.  The  papacy,  however,  was  no  less  the  instrument  of  Satan 
than  was  pagan  Rome;  for  all  the  power,  the  seat,  and  the  great  authority 
of  the  papacy,  were  given  it  by  the  dragon.  And  so,  although  the  pope  pro- 
fesses to  be  the  vicegerent  of  Christ,  he  is,  in  reality,  the  vicegerent  of  Satan 
— he  is  antichrist. 

The  beast  which  is  a  symbol  of  the  papacy  is  introduced  in  Revelation 
13;  and  following  it,  in  the  same  line  of  prophecy,  "another  beast"  ia 
seen  "coming  up,"1  which  exercises  "all  the  power  of  the  first  beast  before 
him,"  that  is,  in  his  sight.  This  other  beast  must  therefore  be  a  persecuting 
power  also;  and  this  is  shown  in  that  "it  spake  as  a  dragon. "  The  papacy 
received  all  its  power  from  Satan,  and  the  two-horned  beast  exercises  the 
same  power;  it  also  becomes  the  direct  agent  of  Satan.  And  its  Satanic  char- 
acter is  further  shown  in  that  it  enforces  the  worship  of  the  image  of  the  beast, 
by  means  of  false  miracles.  "  He  doeth  great  wonders,  so  that  he  maketh 
fire  come  down  from  heaven  on  the  earth  in  the  sight  of  men,  and  decein-t/t 
them  that  dwell  on  the  earth  by  the  means  of  those  miracles  which  he  had 
power  to  do. " 

The  first  persecuting  power  is  represented  by  the  dragon  itself;  in 
heathenism  there  was  open  alliance  with  Satan,  and  open  defiance  of  God. 
In  the  second  persecuting  power,  the  dragon  is  masked;  but  the  spirit  of 
Satan  actuates  it, — the  dragon  supplies  the  motive  power.  In.  the  third  |>»-r- 
secuting  power,  all  traces  of  the  dragon  are  absent,  and  a  lamb  like  beast 
appears;  but  when  it  speaks,  its  dragon  voice  betrays  the  Satanic  power  con- 
cealed under  a  fair  exterior,  and  shows  it  to  be  of  the  same  family  as  the  two 
preceding  powers.  In  all  the  opposition  to  Christ  and  his  pure  religion,  "  that 
old  serpent,  called  the  devil,  and  Satan," — "the  god  of  this  world," — is  tin; 
moving  power;  earthly  persecuting  powers  are  simply  instruments  in  his 
handd. 

Uiev.  13:11-14- 


GENERAL  NOTES.  681 


NOTE  3.  PAGE  328.— That  the  reader  may  see  the  reasonableness  of 
Mr.  Miller's  position  on  the  prophetic  periods,  we  copy  the  following,  which 
was  published  in  the  Advent  Herald,  Boston,  in  March,  1850,  in  answer  to  a 
correspondent : — 

"  It  is  by  the  Canon  of  Ptolemy  that  the  great  prophetical  period  of  the 
seventy  weeks  is  fixed.  This  Canon  places  the  seventh  year  of  Artaxerxes 
in  the  year  B.  c.  457;  and  the  accuracy  of  the  Canon  is  demonstrated  by  the 
concurrent  agreement  of  more  than  twenty  eclipses.  The  seventy  weeks 
date  from  the  going  forth  of  a  decree  respecting  the  restoration  of  Jerusalem. 
There  were  no  decrees  between  the  seventh  and  twentieth  years  of  Arta- 
xerxes. Four  hundred  and  ninety  years,  beginning  with  the  seventh,  must 
commence  in  B.  c.  457,  and  end  in  A.  D.  34.  Commencing  in  the  twentieth, 
they  must  commence  in  B.  C.  444,  and  end  in  A.  D.  47.  As  no  event  occurred 
in  A.  D.  47  to  mark  their  termination,  we  cannot  reckon  from  the  twentieth; 
we  must  therefore  look  to  the  seventh  of  Artaxerxes.  This  date  we  cannot 
change  from  B.  C.  457  without  first  demonstrating  the  inaccuracy  of  Ptolemy's 
Canon.  To  do  this,  it  would  be  necessary  to  show  that  the  large  number  of 
eclipses  by  which  its  accuracy  has  been  repeatedly  demonstrated,  have  not 
been  correctly  computed;  and  such  a  result  would  unsettle  every  chrono- 
logical date,  and  leave  the  settlement  of  epochs  and  the  adjustment  of  eras 
entirely  at  the  mercy  of  every  dreamer,  so  that  chronology  would  be  of  no 
more  value  than  mere  guess-work.  As  the  seventy  weeks  must  terminate  in 

A.  D.  34,  unless  the  seventh  of  Artaxerxes  is  wrongly  fixed,  and  as  that  cannot 
be  changed  without  some  evidence  to  that  effect,  we  inquire,  What  evidence 
marked  that  termination  ?     The  time  when  the  apostles  turned  to  the  Gen- 
tiles harmonizes  with  that  date  better  than  any  other  which  has  been  named. 
And  the  crucifixion,  in  A.  D.  31,  in  the  midst  of  the  last  week,  is  sustained 
by  a  mass  of  testimony  which  cannot  be  easily  invalidated." 

As  the  70  weeks  and  the  2300  days  have  a  common  starting-point,  the 
calculation  of  Mr.  Miller  is  verified  at  a  glance  by  subtracting  the  457  year& 

B.  c.  from  the  2300.     Thus, 

2300 
457 

1843  A.  D. 

The  year  1843  was,  however,  regarded  as  extending  to  the  spring  of  1844. 
The  reason  for  this,  briefly  stated,  is  as  follows:  Anciently  the  year  did  not 
commence  in  midwinter,  as  now,  but  at  the  first  new  moon  after  the  vernal 
equinox.  Therefore,  as  the  period  of  2300  days  was  begun  in  a  year  reckoned 
by  the  ancient  method,  it  was  considered  necessary  to  conform  to  that  method 
to  its  close.  Hence,  1843  was  counted  as  ending  in  the  spring,  and  not  in 
the  winter. 

But  the  2300  days  cannot  be  reckoned  from  the  beginning  of  the  year  457 
B.  c. ;  for  the  decree  of  Artaxerxes — which  is  the  starting-point — did  not  go 
into  effect  until  the  autumn  of  that  year.  Consequently  the  2300  days,  be- 
ginning in  the  autumn  of  457  B.  c.,  must  extend  to  the  autumn  of  1844  A.  D. 
(See  small  diagram  on  plate  opposite  page  328.) 


682  ^APPENDIX. 


This  fact  not  being  at  first  perceived  by  Mr.  Miller  aud  his  associates, 
they  looked  for  the  corning  of  Christ  in  1843,  or  in  the  spring  of  1844;  hence 
the  first  disappointment  and  the  seeming  delay.  It  was  the  discovery  of  the 
correct  time,  in  connection  with  other  Scripture  testimony,  that  led  to  the 
movement  known  as  the  "midnight  cry  "  of  1844.  And  to  this  day  the  com- 
putation of  the  prophetic  periods  placing  the  close  of  the  2300  days  in  the 
autumn  of  1844,  stands  without  impeachment. 

NOTE  4.  PAGE  373.— The  story  that  the  Adventists  made  robes  with 
which  to  ascend  "to  meet  the  Lord  in  the  air,"  was  invented  by  those  who 
wished  to  reproach  the  cause.  It  was  circulated  so  industriously  that  many 
believed  it;  but  careful  inquiry  proved  its  falsity.  For  many  years  a  large 
reward  has  been  offered  for  proof  that  one  such  instance  ever  occurred;  but 
the  proof  has  not  been  produced.  None  who  loved  the  appearing  of  the 
Saviour  were  so  ignorant  of  the  teachings  of  the  Scriptures  as  to  suppose  that 
robes  which  they  could  make  would  be  necessary  for  that  occasion.  The  only 
robe  which  the  saints  will  need  to  meet  the  Lord  will  be  that  of  the  right- 
eousness of  Christ.  See  Rev.  19  : 8. 

NOTE  5.  PAGE  374.— Dr.  Geo.  Bush,  Professor  of  Hebrew  and  Oriental 
Literature  in  the  New  York  City  University,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  Mr. 
Miller,  and  published  in  the  Advent  Herald  for  March,  1844,  made  some  very 
important  admissions  relative  to  his  calculations  of  the  prophetic  times.  Mr. 
Bush  says:-- 

"Neither  is  it  to  be  objected,  as  I  conceive,  to  yourself  or  your  friends, 
that  you  have  devoted  much  time  and  attention  to  the  study  of  the  chronolo<jy 
of  prophecy,  and  have  labored  much  to  determine  the  commencing  and  closing 
dates  of  its  great  peri  >ds.  If  these  periods  are  actually  given  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  in  the  prophetic  books,  it  was  doubtless  with  the  design  that  thej 
s/iould  be  studied,  and  probably,  in  the  end,  fully  understood;  and  no  man 
is  to  be  charged  with  presumptuous  folly  who  reverently  makes  the  attempt 
to  do  this.  ...  In  taking  a  day  as  the  prophetical  term  for  a  year,  I 
believe  you  are  sustained  by  the  soundest  exegesis,  as  well  as  fortified  by 
the  high  names  of  Mede,  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  Bishop  Newton,  Kirby,  Scott, 
Keith,  and  a  host  of  others,  who  have  long  since  come  to  substantially  your 
conclusions  on  this  head.  They  all  agree  that  the  leading  periods  mentioned 
by  Daniel  and  John  do  actually  expire  about  this  aye  of  the  world,  and  it  would 
be  a  strange  logic  that  would  convict  you  of  here  y  for  holding  in  effect  the 
same  views  which  stand  forth  so  prominently  in  the  notices  of  these  eminent 
divines."  "Your  results  in  this  field  of  inquiry  do  not  strike  me  as  s<>  tar 
out  of  the  way  as  to  affect  any  of  the  great  interests  of  truth  and  duty." 
"  Your  error,  as  I  apprehend,  lies  in  another  direction  than  your  chronology." 
"You  have  entirely  mistaken  the  nature  of  the  events  which  are  to  occur 
when  those  periods  have  expired.  This  is  the  head  and  front  of  your  ex- 
pository offending.  .  .  .  The  great  event  before  the  world  is  not  its 
physical  conflagration,  but  its  moral  regeneration.  Although  there  is  doubtless 
a  sense  in  which  Christ  may  be  said  to  c^me  in  connection  with  the  passing 


GENERAL  NOTES.  683 


away  of  the  fourth  empire  and  of  the  Ottoman  power,  and  his  kingdom  to  be 
illustriously  established,  yet  that  will  be  found  to  be  a  spiritual  coming  in  the 
power  of  his  gospel,  in  the  ample  outpouring  of  his  Spirit,  and  the  glorious 
administration  of  his  providence."  Evidently,  Mr.  Bush  looked  for  the  con- 
version of  the  world  as  the  event  to  mark  the  termination  of  the  2300  days. 
Both  Mr.  Miller  and  Mr.  Bush  were  right  on  the  time  question,  and  both 
were  mistaken  in  the  event  to  occur  at  the  close  of  the  great  periods. 

The  doctrines  taught  by  Mr.  Miller  did  not  originate  with  him;  every 
point  advanced  in  his  expositions  of  prophecy,  taken  separately,  was  admitted 
by  some  among  his  opponents.  Hence  there  were  none  who  condemned  all 
his  views,  and  those  who  attempted  to  refute  him  found  that  there  was  as 
great  diversity  among  themselves  as  between  him  and  them.  They  had  not 
only  to  overthrow  Mr.  Miller  s  theory,  but  each  had  to  correct  those  of  the 
others.  This  being  the  case,  their  arguments  could,  of  course,  have  little 
weight  with  those  who  had  received  his  views. 

To  oppose  Miller,  men  who  had  been  regarded  as  leaders  of  religious 
thought  were  ready  to  abandon  long-established  principles  of  Protestant 
interpretation.  The  Boston  Recorder  (Orthodox  Cong.)  said:  "  It  must  needs 
be  acknowledged  that  our  faith  is  greatly  shaken  in  the  interpretations  on  which, 
in  common  with  most  of  our  own  brethren,  we  have  heretofore  relied,  and  which 
form  the  foundation  of  the  baseless  theories  of  Miller  "  ! 

In  their  determination  to  disprove  Mr.  Miller's  positions,  some  were  ready 
even  to  join  with  Universalists,  adopting  indefinite  and  spiritualizing  methods 
of  exposition,  ia  place  of  those  principles  of  literal  interpretation  which  are 
an  essential  feature  of  the  Protestant  faith.  Of  the  arguments  brought  for- 
ward by  Professors  Stuart  and  Bush  the  New  York  Evangelist  spoke  as  follows: 
"The  tendency  of  these  views  is  to  destroy  th«  Scripture  evidence  of  the 
doctrine  of  any  real  end  of  the  world,  any  day  of  final  judgment,  or  general 
resurrection  of  the  body.  The  style  of  interpretation,  we  assert,  tends  fear- 
fully to  Universalism.  This  tendency  we  are  prepared  to  prove."  So  also 
the  Hartford  Universalist  said  of  Professor  Stuart:  "He  puts  an  uncom- 
promising veto  upon  the  popular  interpretations  of  Daniel  and .  Revelation, 
and  unites  with  Universalists  in  contending  that  most  of  their  contents  had 
special  reference  to,  and  their  fulfillment  in,  scenes  and  events  which  trans- 
pired but  a  few  years  after  those  books  were  written."  It  was  thus  that 
popular  ministers  prepared  the  minds  of  thousands  to  lightly  regard  the  tes- 
timony of  the  Scriptures. 

NOTE  6.  PAGE  411  .—That  the  earth  is  the  sanctuary  was  inferred  from 
those  scriptures  which  teach  that  the  earth  will  be  purified  and  fitted  up  for 
the  eternal  dwelling-place  of  the  saints,  according  to  the  original  design  of 
the  Creator.  Adventists  understood  this  just  as  it  was  taught  by  Wesley 
and  others.  And  their  minds  did  not  rest  on  any  other  dwelling-place  or  any 
other  thing  which  needed  cleansing.  The  only  scriptures  which  we  ever 
knew  to  be  offered  in  favor  of  the  earth  or  any  dwelling-place  of  man  being 
called  the  sanctuary,  fairly  disprove  the  position.  They  are  only  three  in 
number,  as  follows:— 


684  APPENDIX. 


Ex.  15  : 17:  "  Thou  shalt  bring  them  [the  people]  in,  and  plant  them  in 
the  mountain  of  thine  inheritance,  in  the  place,  O  Lord,  which  thou  hast 
made  for  thee  to  dwell  in;  in  the  sanctuary,  O  Lord,  which  thy  hands  have 
established. "  Without  taking  time  or  space  to  give  an  exposition  of  the  text, 
it  is  sufficient  for  the  present  purpose  to  remark  that  it  disproves  the  idea  of  the 
earth  being  the  sanctuary.  Whatever  construction  may  be  placed  upon  the 
text,  it  teaches  that  the  people  were  not  then  in  the  sanctuary;  but  they  were 
in  the  earth.  Then  it  is  claimed  that  it  referred  to  that  part  of  the  earth  into 
which  they  were  to  be  brought,  namely,  Palestine.  This  is  disproved  by  the 
second  text. 

Josh.  24  :26:  "And  Joshua  wrote  these  words  in  the  book  of  the  law  of 
God,  and  took  a  great  stone,  and  set  it  up  there  under  an  oak,  tiiat  was  by 
the  sanctuary  of  the  Lord."  The  stone  and  the  oak  were  in  Palestine,  but 
they  were  by  the  sanctuary  of  the  Lord — not  in  it.  And  the  other  text  is 
more  restrictive  still,  and  equally  conclusive  against  the  inference  to  which 
reference  is  herein  made. 

Ps.  78  : 54:  "  And  he  brought  them  [his  people]  to  the  border  of  his  sanct- 
uary, even  to  this  mountain,  which  his  right  hand  had  purchased. ''  The 
mountain  was  Mount  Moriah,  on  which  the  temple  of  Solomon  was  built; 
yet  being  brought  unto  it  is  called  being  brought  "to  the  border  of  his 
sanctuary."  Thus  these  texts  do  not  prove  that  the  earth  is  the  sanctuary, 
but  rather  the  reverse. 

Jehoshaphat's  prayer  gives  the  true  idea  of  the  relation  of  that  land  to 
the  sanctuary:  "Art  not  thou  our  God,  who  didst  drive  out  the  inhabitants 
of  this  land  before  thy  people  Israel,  and  gavest  it  to  the  seed  of  Abraham 
thy  friend  forever  ?  And  they  dwelt  therein,  and  have  built  thee  a  sanctuary 
therein  for  thy  name."  2  CJaron.  20  : 7,  8.  This  corresponds  to  the*  command 
in  Ex.  25  : 8:  "And  let  them  make  me  a  sanctuary;  that  I  may  dwell  among 
them."  In  this  same  book  is  given  a  minute  description  of  the  sanctuary,  its 
erection,  and  approval  by  the  Lord.  The  process  of  cleansing  the  sanctuary 
is  described  in  Leviticus  16.  While  the  children  of  Israel  possessed  Canaan, 
Solomon  built  a  temple,  in  which  was  a  holy  and  a  most  holy  place;  and  the 
vessels  of  the  movable  sanctuary,  which  was  made  in  the  desert  of  Sinai, 
were  transferred  to  the  temple.  This  was  then  the  sanctuary,— the  dwelling- 
place  of  God's  glory  upon  the  earth. 

Some  have  inferred  that  the  earthly  sanctuary  was  a  symbol  of  the  church, 
reasoning  from  those  scriptures  in  which  the  church  is  called  the  temple  of 
God.  But  it  is  not  infrequently  the  case  in  Scripture  that  in  different  con- 
nections the  same  figure  is  employed  to  represent  different  objects.  The  Bible 
plainly  teaches  that  the  holy  places  of  the  earthly  sanctuary  were  "  patterns 
of  things  in  the  heavens."  Heb.  9:23.  The  expression,  "temple  of  God," 
is  sometimes  employed  to  designate  the  sanctuary  in  Heaven,  and  sometimes 
the  church.  Its  significance,  in  each  case,  must  be  determined  by  the  context. 

NOTE  7.  PAGE  429. — Almost  all  Adventists,  including  Mr.  Miller,  did, 
for  a  short  time  after  their  disappointment  in  1844,  believe  that  the  world 
had  received  its  last  warning.  They  could  hardly  think  otherwise,  with  theii 


GENERAL  NOTES.  685 


faith  in  the  message  which  they  had  given, — "  The  hour  of  his  Judgment  is 
come."  Rev.  14  :6,  7.  They  naturally  thought  that  this  proclamation  must 
close  the  dispensation. 

But  the  idea  that  the  work  of  the  gospel  was  finished  was  soon  renounced, 
except  by  some  fanatical  ones  who  would  neither  be  counseled  nor  receive 
instruction.  One  class  who  relinquished  the  view  that  "the  door  of  mercy 
was  shut,"  were  led  to  do  this  because  they  discovered  that  other  messages  were 
to  be  proclaimed  after  that  declaring,  The  hour  of  Judgment  is  come;  and  that 
that  of  the  third  angel,  the  last  one,  was  to  go  to  "many  peoples,  and  nations, 
and  tongues,  and  kings."  They  learned  that  the  Judgment  sits  in  Heaven 
before  the  coming  of  the  Lord;  that  the  judgment  of  the  righteous  is  fully 
accomplished  while  Jesus  is  yet  their  Advocate  before  the  Father's  throne; 
that  eternal  life  is  instantly  given  to  the  saints  when  their  Saviour  comes, 
which  is  proof  that  they  have  been  judged  and  acquitted. 

With  the  light  on  the  third  message  they  also  received  light  on  the 
sanctuary  and  its  cleansing,  by  which  they  understood  that  the  antitypical 
work  of  the  day  of  atonement,  which  was  accomplished  in  the  most  holy 
place,  was  that  which  was  pointed  out  by  the  message  which  they  had  given. 
They  saw  that  there  were  two  veils  or  doers  in  the  temple  of  God  (Heb.  9  : 3), 
and  that  at  that  time  one  was  shut  and  the  other  was  opened.  With  earnest 
zeal  and  new  hope  they  preached  these  truths,  and  "urged  their"  fellow-men 
to  seek  an  entrance  by  faith  into  the  most  holy  place  within  the  second  veil, 
where  our  great  High  Priest  is  gone  to  blot  out  the  sins  of  all  his  faithful  ones, 
from  Abel  to  the  present  time. 

NOTE  8.  PAGE  435.— Rev.  14:6,  7,  foretells  the  proclamation  of  the 
first  angel's  message.  Then  the  prophet  continues:  "There  followed  another 
angel,  saying,  Babylon  is  fallen,  is  fallen,  .  .  „  and  the  third  arigel  fol- 
lowed them."  The  word  here  rendered  "followed,"  means,  in  constructions 
like  that  in  this  text,  "  to  go  with."  Liddell  and  Scott  render  the  word  thus: 
"  To  follow  one,  go  after  or  with  him."  Robinson  says:  "  To  folloiv,  to  go  with, 
to  accompany  anyone."  It  is  the  same  word  that  is  used  in  Mark  5  : 24:  "  And 
Jesus  went  with  him;  and  much  people  followed  him,  and  thronged  him." 
It  is  also  used  of  the  redeemed  one  hundred  and  forty-four  thousand,  where 
it  is  said:  "  These  are  they  which  follow  the  Lamb  whithersoever  he  goeth." 
Rev.  14:4.  In  both  these  places  it  is  evident  that  the  idea  intended  to  be 
conveyed  is  that  of  going  together,  in  company  with.  So  in  1  Cor.  10:4, 
where  we  read  of  the  children  of  Israel  that  "they  drank  of  that  spiritual 
Rock  that  followed  them,"  the  word  "followed"  is  translated  from  the  same 
Greek  word,  and  the  margin  has  it,  "  went  with  them."  From  this  we  learn 
that  the  idea  in  Rev.  14  :  8,  9,  is  not  simply  that  the  second  and  third  angels 
followed  the  first  in  point  of  time,  but  that  they  went  with  it.  The  three 
messages  are  but  one  threefold  message.  They  are  three  only  in  the  order 
of  their  rise.  But  having  risen,  they  go  on  together,  and  are  inseparable. 

NOTE  9.  P,U;K  447.— The  bishops  of  Rome  began,  very  early ;  to  de- 
mand obedience  from  all  the  churches.  Of  this  the  dispute  between  the 
Eastern  and  the  Western  churches  respecting  Easter  is  a  striking  illustration. 


686  APPENDIX. 

This  dispute  arose  in  the  second  century.  Says  Mosheim:  "The  Christians  of 
this  century  celebrated  anniversary  festivals  in  commemoration  of  the  death 
and  resurrection  of  Christ.  .  .  .  The  day  which  was  observed  as  the  anni- 
versary of  Christ's  death  was  called  the  paschal  day,  or  Passover."  Like  the 
Jews,  Christians  celebrated  "a  sacred  feast,  at  which  they  distributed  a  pas- 
chal lamb  in  memory  of  the  holy  supper."  The  Christians  of  Asia  Minor  kept 
this  feast  on  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  first  Jewish  mouth,  when  the  Jews 
celebrated  their  Passover,  and  when  Christ  is  said  to  have  eaten  the  paschal 
lamb  with  his  disciples.  Three  days  thereafter,  a  festival  was  observed  in 
honor  of  the  resurrection.  The  Western  churches,  on  the  other  hand,  cele- 
brated the  resurrection  of  Christ  on  the  Sunday  following  the  Jewish  Pass- 
over, and  observed  the  paschal  feast  on  the  night  preceding  Sunday,  thus 
connecting  the  commemoration  of  Christ's  death  with  that  of  his  resurrection. 

"Toward  the  conclusion  of  this  [the  second]  century,  Victor,  bishop  of 
Rome,  endeavored  to  force  the  Asiatic  Christians,  by  the  pretended  authority  of 
his  laws  and  decrees,  to  follow  the  rule  which  was  observed  by  the  Western 
churches  in  this  point.  Accordingly  ...  he  wrote  an  imperious  letter 
to  the  Asiatic  prelates,  commanding  them  to  imitate  the  example  of  the 
Western  Christians  with  respect  to  the  time  of  celebrating  the  festival  of  Easter. 
The  Asiatics  answered  this  lordly  requisition  .  .  .  with  great  spirit  and 
resolution,  that  they  would  by  no  means  depart,  in  this  manner,  from  the 
custom  handed  down  to  them  by  their  ancestors.  Upon  this  the  thunder 
of  excommunication  began  to  roar.  Victor,  exasperated  by  this  resolute  an- 
swer of  the  Asiatic  bishops,  broke  communion  with  them,  pronounced  them 
unworthy  of  the  name  of  his  brethren,  and  excluded  them  from  all  fellowship 
with  the  Church  of  Rome."1  This,  says  Bower,  was  "the  first  essay  of 
papal  usurpation." 

For  a  time,  however,  Victor's  efforts  availed  little.  No  regard  was  paid 
to  his  letters,  and  the  Asiatics  continued  to  follow  their  ancient  practice. 
But  by  enlisting  the  support  of  the  imperial  power,  which  the  church  for  so 
many  centuries  controlled  to  serve  her  purposes,  Rome  finally  conquered. 
The  Council  of  Nice,  "out  of  complaisance  to  Constantino  the  Great,  ordered 
the  solemnity  of  Easter  to  be  kept  everywhere  on  the  same  day,  after  the 
custom  of  Rome."2  This  decree,  "backed  by  the  authority  of  so  great  an 
emperor,"  was  decisive;  "  none  but  some  scattered  schismatics,  now  and  then 
appearing,  that  durst  oppose  the  resolution  of  that  famous  synod."3 

NOTE  10.  PAGE  565. — There  is  no  more  remarkable  movement  of  the 
present  day,  and  no  one  fraught  with  more  vital  consequences  to  men  and 
nations,  than  the  rapidly  reviving  influence  of  the  papacy  in  national  affairs. 
The  papacy  is  fast  moving  into  the  place  of  the  greatest  influence  of  any 
earthly  organization.  In  Europe,  to  say  nothing  of  Catholic  countries, 
which,  as  a  matter  of  course,  are  subject  to  the  pope,  Chancellor  Bismarck 
has  made  Germany  virtually  subject  to  the  dictation  of  the  papacy;  England 
has  invited  the  interference  of  the  pope  in  her  political  affairs  in  the  contest 

1  Mosheim,  Eccl.  Hist.,  cent.  2,  part  2,  chap.  4.,  IT  9,  11. 

2  Bower's  History  of  the  Popes,  vol.  1,  pp.  18,  19. 
8Heylyn,  History  of  the  Sabbath,  part  2,  chap.  2,  sees.  4,  0. 


GENERAL  NOTES.  687 

with  Ireland;  and  even  the  Czar  of  .Russia  has  shown  himself  willing  to  make 
overtures  to  the  papacy.  On  the  occasion  of  the  golden  jubilee  of  the  priest- 
hood of  Leo  XIII.,  it  is  well  known  that,  except  the  kingdom  of  Italy  and 
the  united  kingdoms  of  Sweden  and  Norway,  every  nation,  Protestant  as  well 
as  Catholic,  paid  grateful  respect  to  Rome. 

If  any  nation  might  justly  be  expected  to  keep  clear  of  Romish  influences, 
the  United  States  of  America  should  be  the  one  above  all  others,  as  it  is 
constitutionally  pledged  to  have  nothing  at  all  to  do  toward  "an  establish- 
ment of  religion  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  thereof."  Yet  this  nation  is 
in  nowise  behind  the  others  in  paying  assiduous  court  to  Rome.  When  the 
papal  delegates  came  to  America  bearing  to  Cardinal  Gibbons  the  trappings 
of  his  Roanish  dignity,  a  government  vessel  was  dispatched  down  New  York 
harbor  to  meet  them,  with  the  papal  flag,  instead  of  the  stars  and  stripes, 
flying  from  the  place  of  honor.  And  at  the  investiture  of  Cardinal  Gibbons 
with  the  purple  of  a  papal  prince,  President  Cleveland  sent  him  a  letter  of 
congratulation.  The  Converted  Catholic  says  that  a  larger  number  of  senators 
and  representatives  send  their  sons  to  the  Jesuit  College  at  Georgetown — one 
of  the  suburbs  of  the  national  capital — than  to  all  the  other  institutions  oi 
learning  at  Washington,  which  proves  either  that  the  larger  number  of  senators 
and  representatives  are  Catholics,  or  that  Rome  has  more  influence  with 
senators  and  representatives  than  have  all  the  educational  institutions  in 
Washington  put  together.  In  view  of  this  fact,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at 
that  Rome  decided  to  build  her  national  university  at  the  national  capital. 

Hon.  L.  Q.  C.  Lamar,  Secretary  of  the  Interior  under  President  Cleve- 
land, was  charged  with  giving  to  Catholics  more  positions  in  his  department 
than  to  other  denominations.  His  reply  was  that  "if  Roman  Catholics  have 
been  recognized  to  a  greater  extent  than  other  denominations,  it  is  only  be- 
cause they  have  asked  more  largely;  "  and  explained  this  by  saying  that  the 
Romish  Church  has  at  Washington  "an  energetic  and  tireless  director,  who 
is  active  to  seize  opportunities  for  extending  missionary  and  educational  work 
among  the  Indians."  The  Christian  Union  says  that  four-fifths  of  the  gov- 
ernment Indian  schools,  under  religious  control,  have  been  given  to  Roman 
Catholics.  The  Assistant  Attorney-General,  of  the  Department  of  the  In- 
terior, under  President  Cleveland's  administration, — Mr.  Zach.  Montgomery, — 
is  a  Roman  Catholic,  with  all  the  Roman  Catholic  enmity  to  the  public  schools, 
and  hesitates  not  to  use  his  official  position  and  influence  to  show  it.  During 
his  term  of  office,  in  an  address  at  Carroll  Institute,  he  openly  denounced  the 
public-school  system  as  godless,  anti-parental,  and  destructive  of  happiness. 
And  the  United  States  Senate  fully  knew  his  enmity  to  the  public  schools 
when  it  confirmed  his  appointment  as  Assistant  Attorney-General.  The  New 
York  Observer  says  that  the  only  public  hospital  that  receives  any  government 
aid  is  a  Roman  Catholic  one. 

In  a  published  letter  to  Hon0  Warner  Miller,  one  ot  the  delegates  at 
large  from  New  York  to  the  National  Republican  Convention,  1888,  Hon. 
John  Jay,  late  Minister  to  Austria,  says  that  the  Roman  Catholics  even  now 
"coolly  discuss  the  disposition  they  will  make  of  the  United  States,  as  a 
people  already  subject  to  the  Vatican  by  the  Irish  votes.  Archbishop  Lynch, 
49 


688  APPENDIX. 


of  Canada,  wrote  to  Lord  Eandolph  Churchill  (the  Churchman,  New  York, 
April  2,  1887):  'The  Irish  vote  is  a  great  factor  in  America.'  'The  power 
of  their  organizations  is  increasing  every  day.'  'They  hold  already  the  bal- 
ance of  power  in  the  presidential  and  other  elections.'"  Further  Mi1.  Jay 
says:  "The  announcement  of  Mr.  Chamberlain's  appointment  as  Fishery 
Commissioner  was  promptly  followed  by  a  reminder  that  no  treaty  he  might 
make  would  stand  a  chance  of  ratification.  The  suggestion  that  Mr.  Phelps, 
our  Minister  to  England,  might  be  nominated  as  Chief  Justice,  brought  a 
quick  announcement  that  the  nomination  would  be  defeated.  ...  It  was 
recently  stated  in  the  United  States  Senate  (February  16,  1888),  in  a  debate 
on  the  bill  for  'national  aid  in  the  establishment  and  temporary  support  of 
common  schools,'  .  .  .  that  a  senator  had  showed  to  the  speaker,  who 
had  read  it  with  his  own  eyes,  the  original  letter  of  a  Jesuit  priest.  In  this 
letter  he  begged  a  member  of  Congress  to  oppose  the  bill  and  kill  it,  saying 
that  they  had  organized  all  over  the  country  for  its  destruction,  that  they 
had  succeeded  in  the  Committee  of  the  House,  and  that  they  would  destroy 
the  bill  inevitably;  and  it  is  a  fact  that  the  bill,  having  three  times  passed 
the  Senate  in  three  different  Congresses,  each  time  with  a  larger  vote  in  its 
favor,  has  been  repeatedly  smothered  in  the  Committee  of  the  House,  by 
those  who  knew  that  there  was  a  majority  in  the  House  in  favor  of  the  bill; 
and  for  six  years  the  legislation  of  Congress  has  been  [thus]  arrested. " 

The  Roman  Church  largely  controls  the  secular  press  of  the  country; 
and  the  leading  "Protestant"  religious  papers,  such  as  the  New  York  Evan- 
gelist, the  Christian  at  Work,  the  Christian  Union,  and  the  Independent,  all  pay 
nattering  tribute  to  the  papacy.  The  Evangelist,  of  March  29,  1888,  acknowl- 
edges Cardinal  Gibbons  as  its  "  only  cardinal;"  the  Independent  wishes  Pope 
Leo  XIII.  "a  long  reign  and  Godspeed  in  his  liberalizing  policy;"  Christian 
at  Work  salutes  him  as  "Holy  Father,"  and  in  the  name  of  "  the  whole  Chris- 
tian world  "  glorifies  him  as  "this  venerable  man  whose  loyalty  to  God  and 
zeal  for  the  welfare  of  humanity  are  as  conspicuous  as  his  freedom  from  many 
errors  and  bigotries  of  his  predecessors  is  remarkable;"  and  the  Christian  Union, 
January  26,  1888,  acknowledges  him  as  " a  temporal  prince "  and  "supreme 
pontiff. " 

NOTE  ii.  PAGE  573. — These  movements  are  apparent  under  diverse 
forms  and  in  different  ways,  but  the  organization  which  embodies  almost 
every  form,  and  works  in  every  way  to  gain  its  end,  is  the  National  Reform 
Association.  It  originated  in  a  conference  representing  "eleven  different 
denominations  of  Christians  from  seven  of  the  States  of  the  Union. "  It  now 
has  the  support  of  prominent  men  from  "all  branches  of  the  church,"  of  the 
National  Woman's  Christian  Temperance  Union,  and  the  Prohibition  party. 
It  proposes  to  have  our  national  Constitution  amended,  "  in  order  to  constitute 
a  Christian  government,"  "acknowledging  Almighty  God  as  the  source  of  all 
authority  and  power  in  civil  government,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  the  ruler 
among  the  nations,  his  revealed  will  as  the  supreme  law  of  the  laud;"  and 
so  placing  "all  Christian  laws,  institutions,  and  usages  of  our  government  on 
an  undeniable  legal  basis  in  the  fundamental  law  of  the  land."  One  of  its 
propositions,  announced  by  David  Gregg,  D.  D.,  pastor  Park  Street  Church, 


GENERAL  NOTES.  689 

Boston,  is  that  the  State  has  "  the  right  to  command  the  consciences  of  men." 
Another,  announced  by  the  Christian  Statesman,  is  that  government  must 
"enforce  upon  all  that  come  among  us  the  laws  of  Christian  morality." 
Another,  announced  by  the  Rev.  E.  B.  Graham,  is  that  ' '  if  the  opponents 
of  the  Bible  do  not  like  our  government  and  its  Christian  features,  let  them  go 
to  some  wild,  desolate  land;  and,  in  the  name  of  the  devil,  and  for  the  sake 
of  the  devil,  subdue  it,  and  set  up  a  government  of  their  own  on  infidel  and 
atheistic  ideas,  and  then,  if  they  can  stand  it,  stay  there  till  they  die." 
Another,  announced  by  Jonathan  Edwards,  D.  D.,  is  that  Jews,  and  all  Chris- 
tians who  keep  the  seventh  day,  are  to  be  classed  as  atheists,  and  "  must 
be  treated,  as  for  this  [National  Reform]  question,  one  party  "  with  atheists, 
who  "  cannot  dwell  together  on  the  same  continent  "  with  the  National  Re- 
form Christianity. 

Anybody  can  see  at  a  glance  that  the  establishment  of  the  National  Re- 
form theory  of  government  would  be  but  the  establishment  of  a  theocracy. 
And  this  is,  in  fact,  what  they  propose  to  establish.  They  say  that  "a  re- 
public thus  governed  is  of  Him,  through  the  people,  and  is  as  really  and 
truly  a  theocracy  as  the  government  of  Israel."  A  monthly  reading  of  the 
National  W.  C.  T.  U.,  written  by  Miss  Willard,  on  God  in  government, 
says:  "A  true  theocracy  is  yet  to  come,  [and]  the  enthronement  of  Christ 
in  law  and  law-makers,  hence  I  pray  devoutly,  as  a  Christian  patriot,  for  the 
ballot  in  the  hands  of  women."  And  in  her  annual  address  to  the  National 
W.  C.  T.  U.  Convention,  of  1887,  Miss  Willard  said:  "The  kingdom  of 
Christ  '  must  enter  the  realm  of  law  through  the  gateway  of  politics.  .  .  . 
There  are  enough  temperance  men  in  both  [the  Democratic  and  Republican 
parties]  to  take  possession  of  the  government  and  give  us  national  prohibition 
in  the  party  of  the  near  future,  which  is  to  be  the  party  of  God.  .  .  .  We 
pray  Heaven  to  give  them  no  rest  .  .  .  until  they  shall  .  .  .  swear 
an  oath  of  allegiance  to  Christ  in  politics,  and  march  in  one  great  army  '  up 
to  the  polls  to  worship  God.'  ...  I  firmly  believe  that  the  patient, 
steadfast  work  of  Christian  women  will  so  react  on  politics  within  the  next 
generation  that  the  party  of  God  will  be  at  the  front."  Now  a  man-made 
theocracy  is  only  a  scheme  of  government  which  puts  man  in  the  place  of 
God.  That  is  precisely  the  theory  upon  which  the  papacy  was  built,  and 
that  is  just  what  the  papacy  is.  The  National  Reform  theory  is  identical 
with  that  of  the  papacy;  therefore  the  establishment  of  the  National  Reform 
theory  in  this  government  will  be  but  the  setting  up  of  a  living  image  of  the 
papacy.  Advocating,  as  these  parties  are,  the  papal  theory,  it  is  not  to  be 
wondered  at  that  they  are  anxious  to  secure  the  co-operation  of  the  papacy 
In  carrying  their  scheme  to  success.  The  Christian  Statesman  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  National  Reform  Association,  and  in  an  editorial,  December  1 1, 
1884,  that  paper  said:  "We  cordially,  gladly,  recognize  the  fact  that  in  the 
South  American  republics,  and  in  France  and  other  European  countries,  the 
Roman  Catholics  are  the  recognized  advocates  of  national  Christianity,  and 
stand  opposed  to  all  the  proposals  of  secularism.  .  .  .  Whenever  they  are 
willing  to  co-operate  in  resisting  the  projress  of  political  atheism,  we  will  gladly  join 
hands  with  them.  In  a  World's  Conference  for  the  promotion  of  national 


890  APPENDIX. 


Christianity — which  ought  to  be  held  at  no  distant  day — many  countries 
could  be  represented  only  by  Roman  Catholics. "  And  in  that  same  paper, 
August  31,  1881,  Rev.  Sylvester  Scovil  said:  "This  common  interest  ["of 
all  religious  people  in  the  Sabbath  " — Sunday]  ought  both  to  strengthen  our 
determination  to  work,  and  our  readiness  to  co-operate  in  every  way  with 
our  Roman  Catholic  fellow-citizens.  We  may  be  subjected  to  some  rebuffs 
in  our  first  proffers,  and  the  time  is  not  yet  come  when  the  Roman  Church 
will  consent  to  strike  hands  with  other  churches — as  such;  but  the  time  has 
come  to  make  repeated  advances,  and  gladly  to  accept  co-operation  in  any 
form  in  which  they  may  be  willing  to  exhibit  it.  It  is  one  of  the  necessities 
of  the  situation.  The  nexus  between  the  two  great  divisions  of  Christianity 
on  questions  of  moral  legislation  is  a  thing  worthy  the  consideration  of  our 
best  minds  and  our  men  of  largest  experience  in  such  affairs."  In  perfect 
accord  with  this  is  the  Encyclical  of  Pope  Leo  XIII.,  1885,  which  directs 
that  "  all  Catholics  should  do  all  in  their  power  to  cause  the  constitutions  of 
States,  and  legislation,  to  be  modeled  on  the  principles  of  the  true  church, 
and  all  Catholic  writers  and  journalists  should  never  lose  sight,  for  an  in- 
stant, from  the  view  of  the  above  prescriptions."  Therefore  as  the  purpose 
of  the  National  Reform  Association  is  identical  \\  ith  that  of  Rome,  it  is  only 
to  be  expected  that  they  should  show  a  readiness  to  "  gladly  join  hands. " 
And  whenever  Protestantism  gains  control  of  the  civil  power,  whether  with 
or  without  the  aid  of  Rome,  that  will  be  but  to  erect  an  image  of  the  papacy. 

NOTE  12.  PAGE  578.— There  are  still  observers  of  the  Bible  Sabbath 
in  Abyssinia.  Joseph  Wolff,  in  his  journal  for  1836,  giving  an.  account  of  his 
visit  to  that  country,  says  that  "the  Sabbath  of  the  Jews,  i.  e.,  Saturday,  is 
kept  strictly  among  the  Abyssiniaiis  in  the  province  of  Hamazien." 

NOTE  13.  PAGES  605..  613.— The  word  ''seal "  is  used  in  the  Scriptures 
in  various  senses,  even  as  in  common  life.  The  definition  given  by  Webster, 
the  most  comprehensive,  is  as  follows:  "That  which  confirms,  ratifies,  or 
makes  stable;  assurance;  that  which  authenticates;  that  which  secures,  makes 
reliable,  or  stable."  The  terms  "mark"  and  "sign,"  also  given  by  him,  are 
used  in  the  Scriptures  as  synonymous  with  seal,  as  in  Eom.  4:11. 

In  the  covenant  with  Noah  it  is  used  in  the  sense  of  assurance,  or  evi- 
dence of  stability.  The  bow  in  the  cloud  was  given  as  a  sign  or  token  that 
God  would  not  again  destroy  the  earth  by  a  ilood.  Gen.  9:13.  In  the 
covenant  with  Abraham,  circumcision  was  the  token  or  sign.  This  ratified, 
or  made  sure;  for  they  who  had  not  this  token  were  cut  off.  Gen.  17  : 11,  14. 
This  sign  or  token  was  an  institution,  a  rite.  Gesenius  gives  "a  memorial" 
as  one  definition  of  the  word  found  in  the  original  of  these  texts.  But  a 
memorial,  in  the  sense  of  a  reminder,  or  a  remembrancer,  is  a  token  or  sign. 

In  Ex.  31  : 17  and  Eze.  20  : 12,  20,  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord  is  called  a 
sign.  It  is  a  memorial  of  the  Creator's  work,  and  so  a  sign  of  his  power  and 
Godhead.  Rom.  1  :20.  This  is  also  an  institution,  as  was  circumcision;  but 
there  is  this  distinction:  circumcision  was  a  sign  in  the  flesh,  while  the  Sab- 
baih  is  a  sign  in  the  mind.  "Hallow  my  Sabbaths;  and  they  shall  be  a 
sign  between  me  and  you,  tlua  ye  may  know  that  I  am  the  Lord  your  God. " 
Eze.  20:20. 


GENERAL  NOTES. 


691 


In  Eze.  9  : 4  the  word  used  in  the  original  is  translated  mark.  Geseiiius 
says,  "  a  mark,  sign."  The  Septuagint  gives  the  same  word  in  this  text  that 
is  given  in  the  Greek  of  Rom.  4:11,  rendered  "sign."  Thus  the  words 
sign,  mark,  and  seal  are  applied  to  the  same  things,  or  used  as  of  like  sig- 
nification, in  the  Scriptures. 

In  Eze.  9  : 4  and  Rev.  7:2,  3,  the  mark  or  sign  is  said  to  be  placed  in  the 
foreheads  of  the  servants  of  God.  Both  these  scriptures  refer  to  a  time  when 
utter  destruction  is  coming  on  the  ungodly.  The  seal  is  placed  upon  God's 
people  as  a  safeguard  to  preserve  them  from  the  evil  impending.  But  "the 
forehead  "  is  evidently  used  as  a  figure,  to  denote  the  intellect  or  mind,  as 
"the  heart"  is  used  to  denote  the  disposition  or  affections.  To  mark  or  seal 
in  the  forehead  is  the  same  as  to  "  write  in  the  mind."  Heb.  10  : 16. 

The  Sabbath  is  the  sign  of  God;  it  is  the  seal  of  his  law.  Isa.  8:16.  It 
is  the  token  of  his  authority  and  power.  It  is  a  sign  whereby  we  may  know 
that  he  is  God,  and  therefore  it  is  appropriately  said  to  be  placed  in  the  fore- 
head. The  worshipers  of  the  beast  (Revelation  13)  are  said  to  receive  his  mark 
in  their  foreheads  or  in  their  hands.  As  the  forehead  represents  the  intellect, 
the  hand  represents  power,  as  Ps.  89  :48,  "Shall  he  deliver  his  soul  from  the 
hand  of  the  grave?"  Compulsory  worship  is  not  acceptable  to  God;  his 
servants  are  sealed  only  in  their  foreheads.  But  it  is  acceptable  to  wicked 
powers;  it  has  always  been  craved  by  the  Romish  hierarchy.  See  chapter 
25  for  proof  on  the  nature  of  this  mark.  The  sign  or  seal  of  God  is  his 
Sabbath,  and  the  seal  or  mark  of  the  beast  is  in  direct  opposition  to  it;  it 
is  a  counterfeit  sabbath  on  the  "day  of  the  sun."  According  to  Rev.  14: 
9-12,  they  who  do  not  receive  the  mark  of  the  beast  keep  the  com- 
mandments of  God;  and  the  Sabbath  is  in  the  fourth  precept;  they  keep 
the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord;  they  have  his  sign  or  seal.  The  importance  of  this 
sign  is  shown  in  this,  that  the  fourth  commandment  is  the  only  one  in  the 
law  which  distinguishes  the  Creator  from  false  gods.  Compare  Jer.  10  : 10-12; 
Acts  17  : 23,  24;  Rev.  14  :  6,  7,  etc.  And  it  is  that  part  of  his  law  for  keeping 
which  his  people  will  suffer  persecution.  But  when  the  wrath  of  God  comes 
upon  the  persecutors  who  are  found  enforcing  the  sign  or  mark  of  the  beast, 
then  they  will  realize  the  importance  of  the  Sabbath,— the  seal  of  the  living 
God.  They  who  turn  away  from  that  which  the  Lord  spoke  when  his  voice 
shook  the  earth,  will  confess  their  fatal  error  when  his  voice  shall  shake  the 
heavens  and  the  earth.  Heb.  12  :25,  26;  Joel  3  : 9-16,  aud  others.  See  alsr 
pages  639,  640  of  this  book. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTES. 

COLUMBA. — The  gospel  was  first  carried  to  Great  Britain  in  the  second 
century;  and  thence,  through  the  labors  of  Succat,  or  St.  Patrick,  in  thj 
fourth  century,  it  spread  to  Ireland.  The  invasion  of  Britain  by  the  pagan 
Saxons,  A.  D.  449,  resulted  in  very  nearly  uprooting  the  Christian  faith  in 
England  and  Scotland.  But  it  was  revived,  a  hundred  years  later,  through 
the  labors  of  Columba,  a  native  of  Ireland,  from  one  of  the  churches  that  had 
grown  up  under  Succat 's  labors.  Colurnba  was  very  active  in  spreading  the 
gospel  in  his  own  country,  when,  his  attention  being  called  to  the  condition 
of  the  heathen  Picts,  he  determined  to  undertake  their  conversion.  With  a 
few  companions  he  established  himself  on  the  little  island  of  lona,  or  Icolrnkill, 
off  the  west  coast  of  Scotland.  A  church  and  college  grew  up  here;  and 
through  the  evangelists  sent  out  from  thence,  the  gospel  was  disseminated 
through  a  considerable  part  of  Europe. 

Columba  was  of  princely  birth,  "of  lofty  stature,  and  noble  bearing.  He 
was  a  man  of  quick  perception,  and  great  force  of  character;  one  of  those  mas- 
terful minds  that  mould  and  sway  others."  "He  had  an  intense  love  for  the 
Word  of  God,  and  spent  much  time  in  reading,  studying,  and  copying  it.  He 
gave  much  time  also  to  prayer  and  to  the  guiding  of  the  communities  which 
put  themselves  under  his  care,  endeavoring  to  train  them  in  useful  arts  as 
well  as  in  Christian  knowledge." 

Columba  labored  personally,  and  with  great  success,  in  Scotland  and 
England,  and  several  times  visited  Ireland.  His  last  days  were  spent  at  lona, 
"the  isle  of  his  heart,"  as  he  usually  called  it.  The  closing  scene  was  most 
touching.  The  day  before  his  death,  being  taken  to  the  hill  which  overlooked 
the  mission  house  and  its  little  farm,  he  stood  surveying  it  for  some  time,  and, 
lifting  up  both  his  hands,  he  invoked  upon  it  the  divine  blessing.  "Return- 
ing to  his  hut,  he  resumed  his  daily  task  in  transcribing  the  Psalter,  ard 
proceeded  to  the  place  where  it  is  written,  '  They  that  seek  the  Lord  shall  net 
lack  any  good  thing. '  '  Here, '  he  said,  at  the  close  of  the  page,  '  I  must  stop. ' 
When  the  bell  for  matins  rang,  he  hastened  to  the  church,  and,  ere  the  breth- 
ren could  join  him,  he  had  fainted  before  the  altar.  Unable  to  speak,  he 
made  a  feeble  effort  once  more  to  raise  his  right  hand  to  bless  them,  and,  with 
joy  beaming  in  his  face,  passed  to  his  rest." 

Columba  was  born  at  Gartan,  County  Donegal,  Ireland,  A.  D.  521;  died 
at  lona,  Scotland,  597. 

THE  WALDENSES — The  name  Waldenses  is  said  to  have  been  deriven 
from  Peter  Waldo,  a  merchant  of  Lyons,  France,  who  lived  about  1150 
A.  D.  Finding  opportunity,  in  the  midst  of  a  life  of  business  activity,  for  the 
study  of  letters,  he  was  led  to  the  Bible,  and,  receiving  the  truths  of  the 
gospel,  he  devoted  his  life  to  the  work  of  an  evangelist.  He  rendered  an  im- 
(692) 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES.  693 

portant  service  to  the  cause  of  reform,  by  procuring,  at  his  own  expense  and 
under  his  supervision,  a  translation  of  the  New  Testament  into  the  Romaunt 
tongue,  then  the  vernacular  of  Southern  France.  This  was  the  first  complete 
translation  of  the  Scriptures  into  any  of  the  languages  of  medieval  Europe, 
and  was  the  only  one  available  for  popular  use. 

But  the  primitive  Christians  known  as  Waldenses,  or  Vaudois,  existed 
before  the  days  of  Waldo.  From  the  earliest  times  there  have  been  Christians 
holding  the  faith  of  the  apostolic  church,  and  bearing  testimony  against 
Romish  tyranny  and  corruption.  The  diocese  of  Milan — which  included  the 
plains  of  Lombardy,  the  Alps  of  Piedmont,  and  the  southern  provinces  of 
France— exceeded  in  extent  the  temporal  dominions  of  the  Roman  see;  and 
it  was  not  until  the  middle  of  the  eleventh  century  that  Mihn  acknowledged 
the  supremacy  of  the  pope.  Even  then  many  of  the  people  repudiated  the 
action  of  their  prelates,  and  in  the  mountains  of  Piedmont  maintained  their 
independence  of  Rome.  In  the  south  of  France  the  Albigenses  offered  a 
similar  resistance  to  the  popish  usurpations. 

The  persecution  which  began  under  Innocent  III.,  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  resulted  in  the  extinction  of  the  Albigeuses,  and  it  continued,  with 
murderous  violence,  against  the  Vaudois  for  hundreds  of  years.  For  the 
sake  of  peace,  many  at  last  resorted  to  an  outward  conformity  to  Rome. 
But  wibh  the  Reformation,  a  new  life  animated  the  dwellers  in  the  Piedmont 
valleys.  Again  they  witnessed  for  their  faith,  and  the  fires  of  persecution 
were  rekindled.  Again  and  again  bodies  of  soldiers  were  dispatched  against 
them.  Massacre  succeeded  massacre.  Tortures  the  most  horrible  that  were 
ever  perpetrated  by  fiends  in  human  form,  were  visited  upon  aged  men, 
helpless  \vomen,  and  little  children.  In  1C85  the  conquest  was  completed. 
All  the  surviving  inhabitants  of  the  valleys  were  dragged  away  to  fill  the 
prisons  of  their  conquerors.  Neglect,  barbarity,  and  pestilence  wrought 
their  dreadful  work;  and  in  less  than  one  year,  out  of  fourteen  thousand  who 
had  entered,  only  three  thousand  came  forth  when  the  prison  doors  were 
opened.  These  were  sentenced  to  exile,  and  in  the  dead  of  winter  a  large 
number  made  their  way  across  the  Alps,  to  a  place  of  refuge.  Hundreds 
perished,  and  after  terrible  suffering,  the  survivors  reached  the  gates  of 
Geneva.  A  few  years  later,  part  of  this  company  returned  to  their  mount- 
ains, and  recovered  possession  of  their  deserted  homes. 

In  the  eighteenth  century,  religious  persecution  generally  subsided.  Yet 
in  1799  tne  Waldenses  were  still  subjected  to  many  civil  restrictions;  their 
children  were  often  stolen,  or  taken  from  them  by  fo^e,  in  order  to  be  edu- 
cated in  the  Catholic  faith,  and  they  had  to  pay  tithes  to  the  Romish  clergy. 
It  was  not  until  1848  that  they  were  admitted,  by  the  rulers  of  Piedmont,  to 
equal  enjoyment  with  others  of  all  social  and  political  rights.  Within  the 
States  of  the  church,  however,  the  pope  still  reigned  supreme,  and  his  power 
was  a  standing  menace  to  religious  freedom.  But  in  1870  the  stronghold  of 
popery  feiL  Soon  the  New  Testament  was  printed  in  Rome,  by  the  hand  of 
a  young  Waldensian,  tinder  the  very  windows  of  the  Vatican.  And  one  of 
the  prisons  was  converted  into  a  publishing  house,  aud  in  the  torture- 


694  APPENDIX. 

chamber  that  once  echoed  the  cries  of  the  martyrs  of  Jesus,  the  press  was  set 
up,  from  which  the  gospel  of  peace  was  sent  out  to  all  the  land. 

JOHN  WYCLIFFE,  or  John  of  Wycliffe,  the  greatest  of  "the  re- 
formers before  the  Reformation,"  was  born  about  1324,  in  the  village  of  the 
same  name,  in  Yorkshire,  England.  His  death  occurred  in  1384.  Of  his 
early  life,  little  is  known.  He  received  his  education  at  the  University  of 
Oxford,  which  even  at  that  early  date  numbered  not  less  than  thirty  thousand 
students.*  Until  near  the  olose  of  his  life  he  continued  t  J  reside  and  to  teach 
here.  By  his  defense  of  the  action  of  Edward  III.  in  refusing  the  pope's 
demand  for  tribute,  and  his  advocacy  of  popular  rights  when  delegated  to 
treat  with  the  papal  nuncios  in  the  Netherlands,  Wycliffe  won  the  confidence 
and  approval  of  the  king  and  the  people.  Though  pursued  by  the  relentless 
enmity  of  the  pope  and  his  supporters,  and  at  last  driven  from  the  university, 
he  was  appointed  by  the  king  to  the  rectory  of  Lutterwprth,  where  he  devoted 
himself  to  the  translation  o*  the  Bible  into  the  mother-tongue.  ' '  Wycliffe 
was  eminent  as  a  scholar,  a  diplomatist,  and  a  preacher."  "His  wonderful 
learning  and  intellectual  ability  gave  him  a  commanding  influence  in  the  uni- 
versity. But  the  Bible  was  his  standard  and  staple;  his  sermons  are  really 
saturated  with  it.  His  object  is  always  to  defend  the  truth  of  Christ." 

JOHN  HUSS,  of  Hussinetz,  Bohemia,  born  in  1378,  was  chief  among 
those  by  whom  the  torch  of  truth  was  handed  down  from  Wycliffe  to  the 
reformers  of  the  sixteenth  century.  He  was  educated  at  the  University  of 
Prague,  and  in  1402  became  rector  of  the  university,  and  preacher  of  Beth- 
lehem Chapel.  He  did  not  apprehend  the  truth  so  clearly  as  did  WyclifFe, 
he  held  to  papal  doctrines  which  the  English  reformer  had  renounced;  but  he 
maintained  the  great  fundamental  truth  of  the  infallibility  of  the  Scriptures, 
and  faithfully  rebuked  the  vices  of  the  church;  and  he  laid  down  his  life  as 
a  witness  to  his  fidelity.  He  was  burned  at  Constance,  in  1415. 

"Huss  was  much  less  remarkable  for  the  amount  of  his  mental  endow- 
ments and  acquirements  than  for  the  candor  with  which  he  formed  his  con- 
victions, the  tenacity  with  which  he  held  them,  the  unselfish  enthusiasm  with 
which  he  spoke  them.  He  cannot  be  said  to  have  added  ...  to  the 
intellectual  wealth  of  the  world;  but  his  contribution  to  its  moral  capital 
was  immense."  He  has  been  justly  pronounced  "one  of  the  bravest  of  the 
martyrs  who  have  died  in  the  cause  of  honesty  and  freedom,  of  progress  and 
of  growth  toward  the  light. " 

JEROME  OF  PRAGUE,  the  devoted  friend  of  Huss,  was  a  descendant 
of  a  noble  Bohemian  family.  After  spending  several  years  at  the  University 
of  Prague,  he  continued  his  studies  at  the  leading  universities  of  France, 
Germany,  and  England,  at  each  receiving  the  degree  of  doctor  of  divinity. 
At  Oxford  he  became  acquainted  with  the  writings  of  Wycliffe,  and  studied 
them  with  great  enthusiasm.  "Until  now,  "he  said,  "we  had  nothing  but 
the  shell  of  sc:ence;  WyclifFe  first  laid  open  the  kernel."  He  engaged  in  trans 
lating  Wycliffe's  writings  into  the  Bohemian  language,  and,  on  returning  to  Bo- 
hemia, joined  Huss  in  promulgating  the  reformed  doctrines.  Jerome  was  born 
about  1305,  and  was  burned  at  the  stake  in  Constance,  in  1416. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES.  695 


MARTIN  LUTHER — Eisleben,  a  little  towii  in  the  Thuringian  forest, 
Saxony,  was  the  birthplace  of  Luther,  the  greatest  of  the  reformers.  Born 
in  14S3,  when  the  revival  of  letters  had  already  begun,  and  the  minds  of  men. 
were  awakening  from  the  stupor  of  medievalism,  Luther  was,  under  God,  to 
lead  them  from  the  bondage  of  superstition.  In  his  boyhood  he  was  sent  to 
school  at  Mansfeld,  at  Magdeburg,  and  at  Eisenach,  and  even  then  manifested 
a  keen  power  of  intellect.  At  Eisenach,  as  he  sang  before  the  houses,  and 
asked  for  bread  for  Christ's  sake,  he  attracted  the  notice  of  the  kindly  Ursula 
Cotta,  who  received  him  into  her  home,  and  gave  a  mother's  care  to  the  poor 
young  scholar.  In  1501  Luther  entered  the  University  of  Erfurt;  four  years 
later  he  abandoned  his  studies,  for  the  monastery.  He  was  ordained  priest  in 
1507,  and  the  following  year  was  called  to  a  chair  in  the  University  at  Witten- 
berg. The  famous  theses  against  indulgences  were  posted  in  1517;  and  in 
1521  he  appeared  at  the  Diet  of  Worms.  For  twenty-five  years  the  decree 
of  outlawry  here  pronounced  hung  over  him;  yet,  like  Wycliffe,  he  was  to  die 
in  peace.  Though  nearly  the  whole  of  his  active  life  was  spent  at  Witten- 
berg, his  death  occurred  at  Eisleben,  his  native  place,  where,  worn  out  with 
his  mighty  labors,  he  expired  February  18,  1546. 

"  Luther's  physical  life  was  largely  one  of  suffering.  His  form,  in  early 
life,  was  spare,  though  in  after-years  approaching  to  corpulence.  The  full- 
ness of  face  given  him  in  his  later  pictures,  however,  is  said  to  have  been  the 
result,  not  of  robustness,  but  of  a  dropsical  tendency  resulting  from  his  early 
austerities.  His  habits  were  abstemious.  His  voice  was  not  loud  nor  strong; 
it  was  their  lightning,  not  their  thunder,  by  which  the  mighty  effects  of  his 
words  were  produced. 

"The  character  of  Luther  lies  so  open  in  his  life  that  it  is  hardly  neces- 
sary to  trace  its  lines.  He  was  so  ingenuous  that  if  all  the  world  had  con- 
spired to  cover  up  his  faults,  his  own  hand  would  have  uncovered  them.  HU 
violence  was  that  of  a  mighty  nature,  strong  in  conviction,  waging  the  battle 
of  truth  against  implacable  foes.  That  he  was  unselfish,  earnest,  honest,  in- 
flexibly brave  in  danger,  full  of  tenderness  and  humanity;  that  he  was  one  of 
the  great  creative  spirits  of  the  race,  mighty  in  word  and  deed,  matchless  as 
a  popular  orator,  one  of  the  very  people,  yet  a  prince  among  princes,  a  child 
of  faith,  a  child  of  God,— this  is  admitted  by  all." 

PHILIP  MELANCTHON,  the  friend  of  Luther,  and  his  co-laborer  in 
the  German  Reformation,  was  born  in  1497-  He  was  the  son  of  a  master- 
armorer  of  Bretten,  in  the  duchy  of  Baden,  and  was  a  relative  and  pupil  of  the 
celebrated  Reuchlin,  who  did  so  much  ijo  introduce  the  study  of  Greek  and 
Hebrew  into  Germany.  The  strength  and  clearness  of  Melancthon's  under- 
standing made  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  a  delight.  At  the  age  of  twelve 
ysars,  he  entered  the  University  of  Heidelberg,  and  at  seventeen  took  his 
doctor's  degree.  It  was  about  this  time  that  he  changed  his  name  from 
Schwartzerd  ("black  earth")  to  the  Greek  Melancthon,  v.  hich  signifies  the 
same  thing.  In  those  times  it  was  not  unusual  for  learned  men  to  translate 
their  names  from  German  to  Latin  or  Greek.  At  twenty-one,  Melancthon 
was  called  to  the  Greek  professorship  at  Wittenberg,  and  then  began  the 


696  APPENDIX. 


friendship  with  Luther  which  continued  till  the  great  reformer's  death. 
Melancthon  compares  Luther  to  Elijah,  and  calls  him  "the  man  full  of  the 
Holy  Ghost."  And  Luther,  contrasting  himself  with  Melancthon,  wrote: 
"  I  was  bound  to  fight  with  rabble  and  devils,  for  which  reason  my  books  are 
very  belligerent.  I  am  the  rough  pioneer,  who  must  break  road;  but  Master 
Philip  conies  along  softly  and  gently,  sows  and  waters  heartily,  since  God 
hath  richly  endowed  him  with  gifts. "  It  was  Melancthon 's  logical  mind  and 
polished  pen  that  wrote  the  confession  of  Augsburg,  whose  clearness,  strength, 
simplicity,  and  elegance  were  acknowledged  even  by  its  foes.  He  died  at 
Wittenberg,  in  1560,  and  was  buried  beside  Luther  in  the  castle  church. 

ULRIC  ZWINGLE  was  born  New  Year's  day,  1484,  in  the  little  village 
of  Wildhaus,  in  a  narrow  valley  of  southeastern  Switzerland.  He  was  the  first 
of  Swiss  reformers,  and  his  work  exerted  a  widespread  influence.  Zurich  was 
the  scene  of  his  most  important  labors;  he  was  called  to  this  city  in  iri9,,  and 
in  1525  the  Reformation  had  become  established  here  without  violence,  and 
almost  without  disturbances.  As  other  cities  and  entire  districts  accepted 
the  reformed  faith,  the  popish  cantons  took  up  arms  to  oppose  the  right  of 
religious  liberty.  In  the  struggle  that  followed,  Zwingle,  who  acted  as  chap- 
lain for  the  reformed  forces,  fell  on  the  field  of  Cappel,  October  il,  1531. 

"  Zwingle  was  a  bold  reformer,  an  able  scholar,  an  eloquent  preacher,  a 
patriotic  republican,  and  far-sighted  statesman.  He  lacked  the  genius  and 
depth  of  Luther  and  Galvin,  the  learning  of  Melancthon  and  (Ecolampadius; 
but  he  was  their  equal  in  honesty  of  purpose,  integrity  of  character,  heroic 
courage,  and  devotion  to  the  cause  of  reformation,  and  he  surpassed  them  in 
liberality." 

JOHN  CECOLAMPADIUS.— (Ecolampadius  is  called  "  the  reformer  of 
Basel,"  but  the  wide  extent  of  his  influence  entitles  him  to  a  more  compre- 
hensive appellation.  In  his  intellectual  and  moral  qualities  he  bore  a  striking 
resemblance  to  Melancthon.  "  There  are  several  illustrations  in  the  period  of 
the  Reformation,  that  the  Lord  delights  to  send  out  his  disciples  in  pairs 
when  he  has  a  great  work  to  accomplish.  Luther  stood  side  by  side  with 
Melancthon,  Calvin  with  Beza,  and  (Ecolampadius  with  Zwingle." 

CEcolampadius  was  born  in  1482,  in  the  present  kingdom  of  VViirtemberg. 
He  early  regarded  Lather's  teaching  with  favor,  and,  in  1522,  upon  being 
invited  to  Basel,  he  entered  upon  his  work  as  a  reformer.  The  city  was  at 
this  time  the  most  important  intellectual  center  in  Switzerland,  the  seat  of  its 
only  university,  and  the  residence  of  its  most  extensive  printers.  (Ecolampa 
dius  was  soon  appointed  to  a  chair  in  the  university,  and  in  1529  the  Reforma- 
tion was  established  in.  Basel.  Here  CEcolampadius  died,  in  1531. 

JACQUES  LEFEVRE,  an  eminent  scholar,  and  one  of  the  earliest  of 
French  reformers,  was  born  about  1450,  and  died  in  1536.  Lefevre  was  a  pro- 
fessor in  the  University  of  Paris,  when,  about  1507,  he  began  to  study  the 
Bible.  He  published  commentaries  on  different  portions  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
in  1521  one  of  his  works  was  condemned  as  heretical.  But  by  the  favor  of 
Francis  I.  and  the  princess  Margaret,  the  proceedings  against  him  were  stopped. 
In  1523  his  Frau<;h  version  of  the  New  Testament  was  issued  After  the  battle 


mo  (1  A' .  1  /  'T1WA  L  NO  TES.  697 


of  Pavia,  however,  and  the  imprisonment  of  Francis  in  Madrid,  the  papist 
party  resorted  to  the  most  vigorous  measures  against  the  reformers,  and 
Lefevre,  then  seventy-five  years  of  age,  fled  to  Strasburg.  Soon  after  the  king's 
release  he  was  recalled,  and,  after  publishing  his  translation  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, he  retired  to  Nerac,  the  residence  of  Margaret  of  Navarre,  where  he 
died.  Lefevre  had  accepted  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Reformation, 
and  maintained  them  in  his  writings;  yet  he  retained  his  connection  with  the 
Romish  Church,  hoping  that  a  reform  might  take  place  in  the  church  itself. 
Studious  and  peace-loving,  he  shrank  from  open  conflict.  But  his  lack  of 
boldness  to  confess  the  truth  caused  him  bitter  remorse  in  his  last  hours. 
With  tears  ami  heart-rending  anguish  he  exclaimed,  "I  am  condemned.  I 
have  concealed  the  truth  which  I  ought  to  have  professed  and  openly  borne 
witness  to. "  Day  and  night  he  continued  to  utter  this  cry,  but  was  at  last 
enabled  to  cast  his  burden  upon  Christ,  and  he  died  trusting  in  the  mercy 
of  God. 

WILLIAM  FAREL,  one  of  the  boldest  pioneers  of  the  Reformation 
in  Switzerland  and  France,  was  born  in  Dauphiny,  a  province  of  Eastern 
France,  in  1489.  He  was  a  zealous  and  successful  student,  and  became  pro- 
fessor in  one  of  the  colleges  of  Paris.  Receiving  the  principles  of  the  reformed 
faith,  he  threw  himself,  with  all  the  strength  of  his  ardent  nature,  into  the 
work  of  the  gospel.  Being  forced  to  flee  from  France,  he  repaired  to  Basel, 
and  formed  a  warm  friendship  with  Zwingle  and  (Ecolampadius,  who  could  not 
but  be  attracted  by  his  energy  and  self-sacrifice,  while  they  perceived  his  lack 
of  discretion,  which  sometimes  led  him  to  imprudence  and  even  rashness. 
But  Erasmus,  the  politic  and  conservative  scholar,  could  not  tolerate  the  un- 
compromising reformer,  and,  through  his  influence,  Farel  was  forced  to  leave 
Basel.  A  large  part  of  his  long  and  active  life  was,  however,  spent  in  Switz- 
erland, in  labors  that  were  at  once  vast  and  perilous;  and  they  resulted  in 
establishing  the  reformed  faith  in  a  considerable  part  of  that  country. 

In  1532,  Farel  went  as  deputy  from  the  reformers  to  the  Waldensian  Synod 
in  the  valley  of  Angrogna.  He  was  ever  after  held  in  high  esteem  by  the 
Vaudois,  and  exerted  a  strong  influence  over  them.  Through  many  vicissi- 
tudes, dangers,  and  sufferings,  he  continued  laboring  for  the  Reformation  until 
the  very  day  of  his  death,  which  occurred  at  Neuchatel,  in  1565.  Farel  was 
an  ardent,  impulsive  man;  a  missionary  rather  than  an  organizer;  an  iconoclast 
rather  than  a  theologian. "  Beza  says  that  in  his  preaching  "he  excelled  in 
a  certain  sublimity,  so  that  none  could  hear  his  thunders  without  trembling." 

JOHN  CALVIN At  Noyon,  in  Picardy,  about  seventy  miles  northeast 

of  Paris,  Calvin  was  born  in  1509;  he  died  at  Geneva  in  1564.  Calvin  early 
renounced  Romanism,  and  in  1534  was  forced  to  flee  from  France.  In  1536 
he  published  at  Basel  the  most  celebrated  of  all  his  works,  "The  Institutes  of 
the  Christian  Religion. "  The  same  year  he  entered  upon  his  labors  at  Geneva, 
where  nearly  all  his  subsequent  life  was  spent.  Here  his  methods  of  govern- 
ment and  reform  were  strictly  observed,  this  being  the  conditi  >o.  upon  which 
alone  he  would  consent  to  remain.  Under  his  rule,  immorality  f  eVery  sort 
was  sternly  suppressed.  Besides  the  refugees  that  flocked  to  Geneva  from 


698  APPENDIX. 

nearly  all  parts  of  Europe,  thousands  of  students  resorted  thither,  drawn  by 
the  fame  of  his  lectures  and  those  of  Beza. 

"Calvin's  habits  were  frugal  and  unostentatious.  He  had  a  clear  under- 
standing, an  extraordinary  memory,  and  a  firmness  and  inflexibility  of  purpose 
which  no  opposition  could  overcome,  no  variety  of  objects  defeat,  no  vicissi- 
tude shake.  In  his  principles  he  was  devout  and  sincere. "  Some  acts  of 
intolerance  have  cast  a  shadow  upon  his  public  career,  but  his  character  in 
private  life  was  without  a  stain.  As  preacher,  author,  pastor,  and  leader  of 
the  Reformation  throughout  Europe,  the  extent  of  his  labors  is  almost  in- 
credible. His  health  was  feeble,  yet  he  continued  his  work  almost  to  the  day 
of  his  death.  He  chose  to  be  poor,  refusing  additions  to  his  moderate  salary, 
and  declining  presents,  except  for  the  purpose  of  giving  them  to  the  poor. 
Though  often  accused  of  amassing  wealth,  he  left  at  his  death  little  moiv 
than  two  hundred  dollars.  At  his  own  request,  he  was  buried  without  pomp, 
and  no  monument  marks  his  grave. 

MENNO  SIMONS,  "a  reformer  whose  apostolic  spirit  and  labors  have 
thus  far  failed  to  receive  the  recognition  they  deserve."  He  was  born  about 
1492,  in  Northern  Holland.  He  died  in  Holstein  in  1559. 

In  1536,  Menno  withdrew  from  the  Romish  Church.  His  opposition  to 
the  doctrine  of  infant  baptism  separated  him  from  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed 
churches.  It  was  his  earnest  effort,  while  firmly  opposing  fanaticism,  to 
restore  in  the  church  the  purity  and  simplicity  of  apostolic  days;  a  personal 
profession  of  faith  in  Christ  was  required  as  a  prerequisite  to  baptism,  and 
purity  of  life  was  a  condition  of  church-membership. 

HANS  TAUSEN,  born  in  Denmark,  in  1494;  died  in  1561.  In  1524  he 
began  to  preach  the  reformed  doctrines.  He  was  the  first  preacher  of  the 
Reformation  in  Denmark,  and,  with  Bugenhagen,  was  the  chief  agent  in  its 
establishment  in  that  country. 

OLAF  AND  LAURENTIUS  PETRI  were  born  at  Orebro,  Sweden, 
the  former  in  1497,  the  latter  in  1499.  Olaf  died  at  Stockholm  in  1552, 
Laurentius  at  Upsala  in  1573.  They  were  chiefly  instrumental  in  the  es- 
tablishment of  the  Reformation  in  Sweden,  under  the  protection  of  the  king, 
Gustavus  Vasa. 

WILLIAM  TYNDALE,  one  of  the  most  eminent  English  reformers  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  was  born  about  1484.  Soon  after  accepting  the  re- 
formed faith  he  formed  the  design  of  translating  the  Scriptures  into  the  En 
glish  language,  and  was  forced  to  flee  to  the  Continent  to  escape  persecution. 
The  New  Testament  was  printed  at  Cologne  and  Worms  in  1525..  His  subse- 
quent history  is  involved  in  obscurity.  He  was  engaged  in  the  translation  and 
printing  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  the  publication  of  various  works  setting 
forth  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation.  To  elude  the  emissaries  of  the 
English  king  and  prelates,  he  pursued  his  work  in  secret,  and  so  carefully  did 
he  conceal  his  places  of  retreat  that  they  are  even  yet  unknown.  In  1534  he 
ventured  to  settle  at  Antwerp,  where  he  was  arrested.  At  the  castle  of  Vilvor- 
den,  a  few  miles  from  Brussels,  he  was  strangled  and  burned,  October  6,  1536. 
It  cannot  be  proved  that  Henry  VIII.  had  any  direct  agency  in  his  execution, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES.  699 

but  he  made  no  effort  to  save  him.  The  martyr's  last  prayer  was,  "  Lord,  open 
the  eyes  of  the  king  of  England." 

The  value  of  Tyndale  's  labors  as  a  translator  of  the  Scriptures  and  a 
promoter  of  the  Reformation  in  England,  has  never  been  adequately  appreci- 
ated. The  millions  who  in  all  quarters  of  the  earth  enjoy  the  blessings  of  the 
,  English  Bible,  owe  him  a  debt  of  gratitude;  for  the  authorized  version  has 
his  for  its  basis.  In  his  own  time  his  teachings  shaped  -the  views  of  many  of 
the  leaders  in  the  English  Reformation,  who  also  sealed  their  testimony  with 
their  blood. 

HUGH  LATIMER,  sometimes  called  "  the  John  Knox  of  England,"  was 
born  about  1470.  His  father  was  a  plain  yeoman,  "who,"  says  Latimer, 
" brought  up  his  children  in  godliness  and  the  fear  of  God."  Latimer  was 
educated  at  Cambridge,  and  was  a  zealous  papist,  but,  through  the  efforts  of 
the  martyr  Bilney,  he  accepted  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation.  His  fearless 
presentation  of  the  truth  won  the  favor  of  Henry  VIII.,  who  appointed  him 
bishop  of  Worcester,  but  upon  the  passage  of  "  the  bloody  act  of  the  six 
articles,"  enforcing  a  belief  in  transubstantiation,  with  other  popish  errors, 
Latimer  promptly  resigned  his  position.  He  was  afterward  arrested,  and  was 
for  six  years  held  a  prisoner  in  the  Tower.  Released  on  the  accession  of 
Edward  VI.,  he  was  offered  his  bishopric,  but  he  firmly  declined  the  honor, 
and  continued  faithfully  to  rebuke  the  vices  of  the  times.  When  Mary  came 
to  the  throne  he  was  again  committed  to  the  Tower.  Though  he  was  now 
eighty  years  old,  no  respect  was  shown  for  his  great  age.  He  steadfastly 
maintained  his  faith,  and  was  burned  at  Oxford  in  1555.  Latimer  was  not  a 
man  of  great  learning;  he  was  plain  in  speech;  but  he  was  brave,  honest, 
and  devoted,  a  reprover  of  sin  both  in  high  places  and  in  low. 

NICHOLAS  RIDLEY,  an  English  bishop  and  martyr,  eminent  for  his 
learning  and  piety,  was  born  about  1500.  He  studied  at  Cambridge,  also  at 
the  most  celebrated  universities  of  France  and  the  Netherlands.  Through  the 
favor  of  Cranmer  he  was  appointed  chaplain  to  King  Henry,  and,  in  the  reign 
of  Edward,  he  became  bishop  of  London.  After  Mary's  accession  he  was, 
with  Latimer,  burned  at  the  stake  in  1555.  Being  denied  permission  to  speak 
unless  he  recanted,  he  said,  "  So  long  as  the  breath  is  in  my  body,  I  will  never 
deny  my  Lord  Christ  and  his  known  truth.  God's  will  be  done  in  me." 

In  his  private  life,  Bishop  Ridley. was  pronounced  "a  pattern  of  piety, 
humility,  temperance,  and  regularity."  Fox  speaks  of  him  as  "a  man  beau- 
tified with  excellent  qualities,  .  .  .  godly  learned,  and  now  written, 
doubtless,  in  the  book  of  life. " 

JOHN  KNOX,  the  reformer  of  Scotland,  was  born  in  1505.  He  was  edu- 
cated at  the  University  of  Glasgow,  and  was  ordained  a  Catholic  priest.  The 
writings  of  Jerome  and  Augustine,  and  the  influence  of  the  martyr  Wishart, 
set  him  free  from  the  fetters  of  Rome,  and  he  became  a  preacher  of  the  gospel. 
When  the  castle  of  St.  Andrews  was  taken  by  the  French,  Knox  was  made 
prisoner,  and  being  carried  to  Rouen  he  served  for  nineteen  months  as  a  galley- 
slave.  Upon  his  release  the  state  of  affairs  in  Scotland  forbade  his  return, 
and  he  spent  some  time  in  England,  acting  as  chaplain  to  Edward  VI.  When 


700  APPENDIX. 

Mary  came  to  the  throne,  'he  went  to  Frankfort  and  Geneva,  in  each  place 
becoming  pastor  of  the  English  exiles.  He  was  much  esteemed  by  Calvin, 
whose  doctrines  he  advocated.  Returning  to  Scotland  in  1559,  he  was, 
through  the  influence  of  the  Romanists,  proclaimed  an  outlaw  and  a  rebel, 
but,  nothing  daunted,  he  pursued  his  labors,  taking  an  active  part  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  Reformation  in  that  country  until  his  death,  in  1572. 

JOHN  BUN  YAN,  so  widely  known  as  the  author  of  "Pilgrim's  Progress," 
was  born  in  England,  in.  1628.  He  was  the  son  of  a  tinker  of  ElstoW;,  and 
was  himself  bred  to  the  same  trade.  He,  however,  acquired  some  of  the 
rudiments  of  education,  and,  though  little  inclined  to  religion,  was  far  supe- 
rior ii.  morals  to  most  of  his  class.  He  served  for  a  time  in  the  parliamentary 
army,  and  here  one  of  his  comrades,  while  filling  his  post,  was  killed. 
Bunyan  felt  that  a  divine  hand  had  interposed  to  save  his  life,  and  he  was 
thus  led  to  give  his  attention  to  religious  things.  After  long  and  severe  con- 
flicts he  found  peace  in  Christ.  He  joined  the  Baptists,  and  became  an 
exhorter,  and,  after  a  time,  one  of  their  most  distinguished  preachers. 

In  1660,  under  the  oppressive  measures  enforced  at  the  Restoration, 
Bunyan  was  thrown  into  Bedford  jail,  where  he  remained  for  twelve  years. 
For  the  support  of  his  family  he  took  up  the  making  of  tagged  thread  boot- 
laces, but  he  firmly  refused  either  to  sacrifice  his  faith  or  to  escape  from  his 
prison  by  strategem,  as  he  might  easily  have  done.  He  was  offered  his 
freedom  if  he  would  give  up  preaching,  and  was  told  that  if  he  persisted  in 
defying  the  law,  he  would  be  sentenced  to  banishment,  and  to  death  should 
he  return  to  England.  His  answer  was,  "If  you  let  me  out  to-day,  I  will 
preach  again  to-morrow. "  But  his  persecutors  were  thwarted;  for  the  "Pil- 
grim's Progress,"  which  he  wrote  in  his  dungeon,  has  taught  the  truths  of 
salvation  wherever  the  English  language  is  spoken,  and  it  has  been  translated 
into  every  tongue  of  Christendom.  It  is  one  of  the  favorite  books  that,  after 
Holy  Scripture,  the  missionary  to  the  heathen  translates  for  his  converts. 

After  his  release,  Bunyan  preached  with  great  zeal  and  success,  gaining 
the  appellation  of  "Bishop  Bunyan."  The  Bible  was  his  constant  companion, 
the  source  of  his  wisdom,  and  the  inspiration  of  his  genius.  Self-sacrifice  for 
the  truth's  sake  and  for  the  good  of  others  was  the  rule  of  his  life.  He  died 
at  the  age  of  sixty,  from  exposure  in  a  storm  while  returning  from  a  success- 
ful effort  to  reconcile  a  father  to  his  sop.  There  are  few  more  striking  exam- 
ples of  the  educating,  transforming  pOMrer  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  upon  both 
the  intellect  and  the  heart,  than  is  presented  in  the  history  of  John  Bunyan. 

J.OHN  WESLEY,  the  founder  of  Methodism,  was  born  at  Epworth, 
England,  in  1703.  His  father  was  a  minister  of  the  Church  of  England.  His 
mother,  from  whom  he  received  his  early  training  and  education,  was  a  woman 
of  great  intelligence  and  deep  piety,  firm  yet  wise  in  discipline,  and  a  skillful 
teacher.  He  studied  at  Oxford,  and  won  a  high  reputation  for  scholarship. 
It  was  here  that  the  famous  "Holy  Club"  was  formed,  John  and  Charles 
Wesley,  Whitefield,  and  others  uniting  together  for  devotional  exercises,  min- 
istering to  the  sick  and  the  poor,  visiting  prisons,  etc. 

In  1725,  Wesley  received  ordination  to  the  ministry.     When  a  mission  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES.  701 


Georgia  for  the  conversion  of  the  Indians  was  projected,  and  a  call  was  made 
for  "a  clergyman  inured  to  contempt  of  the  ornaments  and  conveniences  of 
life,  to  bodily  austerities,  and  to  serious  thoughts,"  Wesley  responded.  He 
remained  two  years  in  the  colony,  but  without  opportunity  to  accomplish  the 
object  of  his  mission.  He  returned  to  England  in  1738,  and  the  same  year 
fully  received  the  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith,  and  began  to  preach  it. 
He  especially  devoted  himself  to  the  work  of  carrying  the  gospel  to  the  poor 
and  neglected  classes.  Finding  the  churches  closed  against  him,  he  finally 
vesorted  to  open-air  preaching.  "I  could  hardly  reconcile  myself,  "he  says, 
"to  this  strange  way  of  preaching  in  the  fields,  .  .  .  having  been  all  my 
life  (till  very  lately)  so  very  tenacious  of  every  point  relating  to  decency  and 
order  that  I  should  have  thought  the  saving  of  souls  almost  a  sin  if  it  had 
not  been  done  in  a  church."  Until  his  death,  in  1791,  he  continued  his  labors 
in  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland.  During  his  life  he  traveled  upwards  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  miles,  and  preached  forty  thousand  sermons, 
besides  the  oversight  of  all  his  churches  and  congregations,  an  immense  cor- 
respondence, and  the  preparation  of  his  voluminous  writings. 

GEORGE  WHITEFIELD,  one  of  the  most  celebrated  evangelists  of 
modern  times,  was  a  native  of  Gloucester,  England.  Educated  at  Oxford,  and 
a  member  of  the  Methodist  Club,  he  was  the  first  of  their  number  who  pro- 
fessed conversion.  He  was  ordained  in  1736,  and  labored  especially  to  benefit 
the  multitudes  who  were  .not  reached  by  the  ordinary  ministrations  of  the 
church.  He  seven  times  visited  America,  preaching  in  all  the  large  cities. 
He  also  labored  extensively  in  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland,  and  made  a 
visit  to  Holland.  Whitefield  differed  from  Mr.  Wesley  in  regard  to  the  doc- 
trine of  predestination,  and  the  separation  which  resulted  gave  rise  to  the 
two  branches,  Calvinistic  and  Wesley  an  Methodists.  He  died  in  1770,  at  the 
age  of  fifty- six,  as  he  was  preparing  for  a  seventh  missionary  tour  through 
the  United  States. 

The  power  of  Whitefield's  preaching  was  acknowledged  by  all  classes; 
multitudes  £  coked  to  hear  him,  and  extensive  revivals  followed  his  labors. 
Not  infrequently  he  preached  three  or  four  times  a  day.  The  day  before  his 
death  he  spoke  at  Exeter,  Mass.,  holding  a  large  audience  spell-bound  for  two 
hours.  He  wsnt  to  Newburyport,  intending  to  preach  next  day.  As  he  was 
retiring  to  his  chamber  at  night,  seeing  the  people  gathered  in  the  hall  below, 
he  stopped,  and  spoke  to  them  from  the  staircase  until  his  candle  burned  out 
in  the  socket.  The  next  morning  he  was  dead. 

JOHN  ROBINSON,  the  Pilgrim  pastor,  was  born  in  England,  in  1575. 
He  was  educated  at  Cambridge,  and  became  a  minister  of  the  Established 
Church;  but  feeling  that  the  ecclesiastical  supremacy  accorded  to  the  king  was 
contrary  to  the  teachings  of  Christ,  he  resolved  upon  separation.  The  decision 
was  a  painful  one,  and  in  referring  to  it  he  says,  "Had  not  the  truth  been 
in  my  heart  '  as  a  burning  fire  shut  up  in  my  bones, '  I  had  never  broken 
those  bonds,  .  .  .  but  had  suffered  the  light  of  God,  to  have  been  put  out 
in  mine  own  unthankful  heart  by  other  men's  darkness."  Robinson  was 
among  the  exiles  who  found  refuge  in  Holland,  and  he  became  pastoi  ot  the 


702  APPENDIX. 


Pilgrim  church  at  Leyden,  where  he  was  highly  esteemed  both  for  piety  and 
scholarship.  When  the  Pilgrims  decided  to  seek  a  home  in  America,  it  was 
found  necessary  to  divide  the  company,  and  as  the  majority  remained  at 
Leyden,  to  follow  their  brethren  at  a  later  period,  they  claimed  the  min- 
istry of  their  pastor.  But  Robinson  was  not  to  accompany  his  flock  to  the 
New  World.  He  died  at  Leyden,  in  1625.  His  family  afterward  joined  the 
exiles,  and  his  descendants  were  among  the  colonists  of  New  England. 

Robinson's  character  may  be  read  in  his  farewell  address  to  the  Pilgrims. 
He  was  one  of  the  few  men  that,  in  every  age,  have  been  the  hope  of  reform, 
— men  who,  instead  of  resting  their  faith  upon  the  creed  or  teaching  of  the 
church,  will  build  only  upon  the  eternal  foundation  of  the  Word  of  God. 

ROGER  WILLIAMS,  pre-eminently  the  advocate  of  religious  freedom, 
was  a  native  of  Wales,  born  about  1600.  He  died  in  Rhode  Island,  in  1683. 
Williams  toek  orders  in  the  Church  of  England;  but  soon,  he  says,  his 
"  conscience  was  persuaded  against  the  national  church  and  ceremonies  and 
bishops."  He  went  to  America  in  1631,  but  being  too  radical  and  outspoken 
even  for  the  Puritan  colonies,  he  was  sentenced  to  banishment.  One  of  the 
regulations  enacted  by  those  law-makers  was:  "If  any  person  or  persons 
within  this  jurisdiction  .  .  .  shall  deny  their  [the  magistrates']  lawful 
right  or  authority  ...  to  punish  the  outward  breaches  of  the  first  table 
[of  the  decalogue],  .  .  .  every  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  sentenced 
to  banishment. "  As  Williams  stoutly  denied  the  jurisdiction  of  the  magis- 
trates in  religious  matters,  he  stood  condemned. 

He  had  been  accused  of  advancing  opinions  that  were  dangerous  to  the 
peace  and  order  of  the  commonwealth;  but  upon  proceeding  to  Rhode  Island 
he  founded  a  community  in  which  perfect  religious  liberty  prevailed,  and 
where  these  very  teachings  were  freely  permitted;  yet  life,  property,  and  civil 
government  were  as  secure  here  as  in  Massachusetts.  Thus  it  was  demon- 
strated that  Williams'  teachings  were  not  dangerous  to  the  peace  and  order 
of  the  State,  that  the  charges  against  him  were  unsustained,  and  that  his 
banishment  from  Massachusetts  was  unjust. 

"  Williams'  character  as  a  man  and  a  Christian  was  above  reproach.  Even 
his  bitterest  opponents  spoke  of  him  personally  in  terms  of  high  respect. 
He  was  an  especial  friend  of  the  Indians.  He  studied  their  language,  re- 
spected and  defended  their  title  to  their  lands,  and  when  the  Massachusetts 
Colony  and  other  white  settlements  were  threatened  with  Indian  hostilities, 
he  was  able,  by  his  acquaintance  and  friendship  with  leading  chiefs,  to  avert 
the  impending  dangers."  It  was  thus  that  Williams  requited  the  injustice 
which  he  had  suffered. 

WILLIAM  MILLER,  the  well-known  prophetic  expositor,  was  born 
at  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  in  1782.  During  the  greater  part  of  his  life,  however, 
his  home  was  at  Low  Hampton,  New  York,  where  he  died  in  1849.  The  son 
of  an  officer  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution,  Mr.  Miller  himself  served  in  the 
war  of  1812,  holding  a  captain's  commission  in  the  regular  army.  He  had 
imbibed  deistical  sentiments  before  entering  the  army,  but  his  integrity  of 
character  rendered  the  profligacy  of  the  camp  so  distasteful  to  him  that  upon 
the  expiration  of  the  war  he  gladly  abandoned  a  military  life. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES.  703 

The  fact  that  deism  denies  a  future  existence  prevented  him  from  giving 
a  cordial  assent  to  the  doctrine,  though  he  did  not  accept  the  Scriptures  as 
inspired.  When,  however,  he  came  to  look  upon  the  Bible  as  its  own  in- 
terpreter, instead  of  accepting  the  current  theological  teaching  as  the  ex- 
ponent of  revelation,  all  his  difficulties  were  swept  away.  From  the  year 
1818,  when  he  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  personal  coming  of  Christ  was 
near,  he  continued  for  thirteen  years  prayerfully  investigating  the  subject, 
but  mentioning  his  views  only  in  private.  He  entered  upon  their  public  pre- 
sentation in  1831,  and,  between  this  time  and  1844,  delivered  four  thousand 
lectures  in  five  hundred  different  towns.  About  two  hundred  ministers  ac- 
cepted his  views,  and  five  hundred  public  lecturers  engaged  in  their  promul- 
gation. In  nearly  a  thousand  places,  congregations  of  believers  were  raised 
up,  comprising  about  fifty  thousand  persons.  Under  Mr.  Miller's  labors/ 
alone,  not  less  than  six  thousand  souls  were  converted  to  Christ,  and  the 
number  was  probably  much  greater.  Of  the  converts,  fully  seven  hundred 
were  avowed  infidels  before  attending  his  lectures. 

Though  mistaken  in  regard  to  the  exact  time  of  the  second  advent,  his 
belief  was  unchanged  as  to  the  manner  and  nearness  of  the  Saviour's  coming. 
In  1845  he  wrote:  "I  have  candidly  weighed  the  objections  advanced 
against  these  views;  but  I  have  seen  no  arguments  that  were  sustained  by 
the  Scriptures,  that,  in  my  opinion,  invalidated  my  position.  I  cannot, 
therefore,  conscientiously  refrain  from  looking  for  my  Lord,  or  from  exhorting 
my  fellow-men,  as  I  have  opportunity,  to  be  in  readiness  for  that  great  event.*' 
Yet  he  felt  that  his  own  work  was  nearly  ended.  "I  shall  leave  to  my 
younger  brethren,"  he  said,  "the  task  of  contending  for  the  truth.  Many 
years  I  toiled  on  alone;  God  has  now  raised  up  those  who  will  fill  my  place." 
He  continued,  however,  to  preach  from  time  to  time,  as  the  increasing  in- 
firmities of  age  would  permit;  and  he  died  in  full  faith  of  the  doctrines  which 
he  had  proclaimed. 

JOSEPH  WOLFF,  the  famous  Hebrew  missionary  and  traveler,  was 
born  in  1795,  in  Bavaria.  "Endowed  with  almost  unprecedented  linguistic 
talent,  a  quick  power  of  perception,  lively  temperament,  and  great  prudence, 
he  became  acquainted,  at  a  very  early  age,  with  the  most  prominent  men  in 
different  countries  of  Europe.  In  1812  he  was  baptized  at  Prague  by  a 
Benedictine  monk.  At  Rome,  where  he  went  to  be  educated  as  a  missionary, 
he  devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  Oriental  languages,  intending  to  carry  the 
gospel  to  both  Jews  and  Mohammedans.  He  enjoyed  the  favor  of  the  most 
prominent  men,  including  that  of  Pope  Pius  VII.;  but  the  liberal  views 
which  he  expressed  on  various  occasions  made  him  suspected  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Inquisition,  and  he  had  to  leave  the  college  and  the  eternal  city.  In 
England,  he  speedily  found  friends.  The  founders  of  the  London  Society  for 
the  Jews,  perceiving  his  special  fitness  for  missionary  work,  effected  his  en- 
trance to  Cambridge  University,  where  he  continued  his  Oriental  studies. 

"  During  his  adventurous  life  as  a  traveler, — in  Europe,  Asia,  America, 
and  a  part  of  Africa, — he  became  acquainted  with  kings  and  princes,  as  well 
as  with  the  most  learned  men  of  all  ecclesiastical  relations.  In  the  greatest 
perils  he  »howed  an  undaunted  courage,  and  great  presence  of  mind.  He 


704  APPENDIX. 


preached  everywhere, — at  one  time  in  this  language,  at  another  in  a  different 
one;  and  wherever  he  went,  he  understood  how  to  interest  the  most  promi- 
nent men  and  women  in  behalf  of  his  mission. "  Worn  with  the  labors  and 
exposures  of  his  long  journeyings,  he  spent  his  last  years  as  the  rector  of  an 
English  country  parish,  where  he  died,  in  1862. 

JOHN  ALBERT  BENGEL  was  born  in  Wiirtemburg,  in  1687;  died  in 
1751.  He  is  universally  regarded  as  a  man  of  critical  judgment,  of  extensive 
learning,  and  solid  piety.  He  was  the  author  of  several  Biblical  works  of 
great  value,  both  critical  and  exegetical,  which  still  form  a  part  of  the  treas- 
ures of  the  Bible  student.  Bengel's  rule  of  interpretation  was  ' '  to  put  noth- 
ing into  the  Scriptures,  but  to  draw  every  thing  from  them,  and  suffer  nothing 
to  remain  hidden  that  is  really  in  them. " 

LOUIS  GAUSSEN,  born  in  1790,  was  a  native  of  Geneva,  and  a  clergy- 
man of  the  Reformed  Church.  He  was  known  throughout  Switzerland  as  an 
earnest  upholder  of  evangelical  Christianity,  and  was  associated  with  Dr. 
Merle  d'Aubigne  and  others,  in  seeking  to  substitute  a  scriptural  faith  for 
the  rationalistic  philosopy  which  pervaded  G  eneva.  He  encountered  deter- 
mined opposition,  and  was  at  last  suspended  by  the  consistory.  In  1834  he 
took  the  chair  of  theology  in  the  newly-founded  evangelical  school  of  Geneva, 
and  became  the  author  of  various  works  upon  the  Scriptures.  His  death 
occurred  in  1863. 

PIUS  IX.  AND  THE  DECREE  OF  INFALLIBILITY — From  Mr. 
Gladstone's  tract,  "The  Vatican  Decrees,"  we  condense  the  following  brief 
account  of  the  promulgation  of  the  decree  of  infallibility  under  Pope  Pius  IX.: 
The  Vatican  Council  was  solemnly  opened,  amid  the  sound  of  innumerable 
bells  and  the  cannon  of  St.  Angelo,  December  8,  1869,  in  the  Basilica  of  the 
Vatican.  At  the  fourth  public  session,  July  18,  1870,  the  decree  of  papal 
infallibility  was  proclaimed.  This  decree  not  only  asserts  the  power  of  the 
Roman  pontiff  over  all  other  churches,  but  attributes  to  him  "an  immediate 
jurisdiction,  to  which  all  Catholics,  both  pastors  and  people,  are  bound  to 
submit  in  matters  not  only  of  faith  and  morals,  but  even  of  discipline  and 
government."  It  declares  that  the  pope,  when  speaking  "in  his  official 
capacity,  to  the  Christian  world  on  subjects  relating  to  faith  and  morals,  is 
infallible^  and  that  his  decisions  are  final  and  irreversible. 

This  crowning  act  of  papal  blasphemy  was  speedily  followed  by  the  fall 
of  the  pope's  temporal  sovereignty.  On  the  second  of  September,  1870,  six 
weeks  from  the  time  when  the  decree  of  infallibility  was  proclaimed,  "  the 
French  Empire,  which  had  been  the  main  support  of  the  temporal  power  of 
the  pope,  collapsed  with  the  surrender  of  Napoleon  III.,  at  the  old  Huguenot 
stronghold  of  Sedan,  to  the  Protestant  King  William  of  Prussia;  and  on  the 
twentieth  of  September  the  Italian  troops,  in  the  name  of  King  Victor 
Emanuel,  took  possession  of  Rome,  as  the  future  capital  of  united  Italy." 
From  the  day  when  Pius  IX.  appeared  before  the  people  of  Rome,  at  the 
announcement  of  his  infallibility,  he  was  never  again  seen  in  public.  Shorn 
of  his  temporal  power,  and  disdaining  to  own  himself  subject  to  the  national 
authority,  the  proud  pontiff  of  Rome  conf  ued,  until  his  death,  in  1878,  a 
•elf-constituted  prisoner  ia  the  palace  of  iht  Vatican.  S 


IES 


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